Vertical crustal motions across Eastern Tibet revealed by topography-dependent seismic tomography

Using a topography-dependent tomographic scheme, the seismic velocity structure of the Eastern Tibetan Plateau, including the uplifted Longmenshan (LMS) orogenic belt, is accurately imaged in spite of the extreme topographic relief in the LMS region and thick sedimentary covers in the neighbouring Sichuan Basin. The obtained image shows a high-resolution upper crustal structure on a 500 km-long profile that is perpendicular to the LMS. The image clearly shows that the crystalline basement was uplifted within the LMS orogenic belt, and that the neighbouring Songpan-Ganzi Terrane was covered by a thick flysch belt, with evidence of near-surface thrust faults caused by convergence between Eastern Tibet and the Sichuan Basin. The indication that the lower crust beneath the LMS was folded and pushed upwards and the upper crust was removed by exhumation, supports the concept of a lower crustal channel flow beneath Eastern Tibet. The image also reveals that the destructive Wenchuan earthquake of year 2008 occurred in the upper crust, directly at the structural discontinuity between Eastern Tibet Plateau and the Sichuan Basin.