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Constraints On Unroofing Rates In The High Himalaya, Eastern Nepal, Mary S. Hubbard, L. H. Royden, K. V. Hodges

Geosciences Faculty Publications

Thermobarometric data for samples across the Main Central thrust zone in eastern Nepal show an inversion in temperature but not in pressure. These data have been interpreted to represent a portion of the paleogeotherm at the time of Main Central thrust deformation. A 40Ar/39Ar age on hornblende (closure temperature (Tc)=500±50°C) constrains the timing of this deformation to be ∼21±0.2 Ma. The 40Ar/39Ar ages of other minerals (muscovite, Tc=350°C, age (t)=12.0±0.2 Ma; K-feldspar, Tc=220°C, t=8.0±0.2 Ma) from the same location further constrain the cooling history of this region. Together the geochronologic and thermobarometric data yield an average unroofing rate of 1.2±0.6 …