TY - JOUR A1 - Harvey, Jonathan E. A1 - Burbank, Douglas W. A1 - Bookhagen, Bodo T1 - Along-strike changes in Himalayan thrust geometry: Topographic and tectonic discontinuities in western Nepal JF - Lithosphere N2 - Geodetic and seismologic studies support a tectonic model for the central Himalaya wherein similar to 2 cm/yr of Indo-Asian convergence is accommodated along the primary decollement under the range, the Main Himalayan thrust. A steeper midcrustal ramp in the Main Himalayan thrust is commonly invoked as driving rapid rock uplift along a range-parallel band in the Greater Himalaya. This tectonic model, developed primarily from studies in central Nepal, is commonly assumed to project along strike with little lateral variation in Main Himalayan thrust geometry or associated rock uplift patterns. Here, we synthesize multiple lines of evidence for a major discontinuity in the Main Himalayan thrust in western Nepal. Analysis of topography and seismicity indicates that west of similar to 82.5 degrees E, the single band of steep topography and seismicity along the Main Himalayan thrust ramp in central Nepal bifurcates around a high-elevation, low-relief landscape, resulting in a two-step topographic front along an similar to 150 km segment of the central Himalaya. Although multiple models could explain this bifurcation, the full suite of data appears to be most consistent with a northward bend to the Main Himalayan thrust ramp and activation of a young duplex horse to the south. This poorly documented segmentation of the Main Himalayan thrust has important implications for the seismogenic potential of the western Nepal seismic gap and for models of the ongoing evolution of the orogen. Y1 - 2015 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1130/L444.1 SN - 1941-8264 SN - 1947-4253 VL - 7 IS - 5 SP - 511 EP - 518 PB - American Institute of Physics CY - Boulder ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Neely, Alexander B. A1 - Bookhagen, Bodo A1 - Burbank, Douglas W. T1 - An automated knickzone selection algorithm (KZ-Picker) to analyze transient landscapes: Calibration and validation JF - Journal of geophysical research : Earth surface N2 - Streams commonly respond to base-level fall by localizing erosion within steepened, convex knickzone reaches. Localized incision causes knickzone reaches to migrate upstream. Such migrating knickzones dictate the pace of landscape response to changes in tectonics or erosional efficiency and can help quantify the timing and source of base-level fall. Identification of knickzones typically requires individual selection of steepened reaches: a process that is tedious and subjective and has no efficient means to measure knickzone size. We construct an algorithm to automate this procedure by selecting the bounds of knickzone reaches in a -space (drainage-area normalized) framework. An automated feature calibrates algorithm parameters to a subset of knickzones handpicked by the user. The algorithm uses these parameters as consistent criteria to identify knickzones objectively, and then the algorithm measures the height, length, and slope of each knickzone reach. We test the algorithm on 1, 10, and 30m resolution digital elevation models (DEMs) of six catchments (trunk-stream lengths: 2.1-5.4km) on Santa Cruz Island, southern California. On the 1m DEM, algorithm-selected knickzones confirm 93% of handpicked knickzone positions (n=178) to a spatial accuracy of 100m, 88% to an accuracy within 50m, and 46% to an accuracy within 10m. Using 10 and 30m DEMs, accuracy is similar: 88-86% to 100m and 82% to 50m (n=38 and 36, respectively). The algorithm enables efficient regional comparison of the size and location of knickzones with geologic structures, mapped landforms, and hillslope morphology, thereby facilitating approaches to characterize the dynamics of transient landscapes. Plain Language Summary The shape of rivers reflects the environments that they flow through and the environments that they link together: mountains and oceans. Anywhere along the length of a river, changes in environmental conditions are propagated upstream and downstream as the river changes its morphology to match the new environmental conditions. Commonly, rivers steepen as land uplifts faster in regions of high tectonic convergence. The steepening of river gradients is propagated upstream and can be mapped to trace zones of high tectonic activity across landscapes and estimate the source and timing of environmental change. Such insights may indicate regions where earthquakes have become more frequent in the recent past and how rivers respond to these changes. In this submission, we detail an algorithm that can use digital topographic data (similar to google earth), to automatically map and measure anomalously steep river reaches across continental scales. This technology can highlight areas that have experienced recent sustained changes in environmental conditions, evident by changes in the morphology of rivers. Such environmental conditions could be changes in tectonic uplift and earthquake activity, changes in sea level, changes in land-use, or changes in climate, all factors that can produce measurable differences in river morphology over time. KW - knickpoint KW - transient KW - knickzone KW - incision KW - relict landscape KW - Santa Cruz Island Y1 - 2017 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1002/2017JF004250 SN - 2169-9003 SN - 2169-9011 VL - 122 SP - 1236 EP - 1261 PB - American Geophysical Union CY - Washington ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Clarke, Brian A. A1 - Burbank, Douglas W. T1 - Bedrock fracturing, threshold hillslopes, and limits to the magnitude of bedrock landslides N2 - Bedrock fracturing and rock strength are widely believed to influence landscape morphology and erosional resistance. Yet, understanding of the quantitative relationship between rock-mass strength and landscape evolution remains limited. Here we present a new application of seismic refraction surveys that uses variations in seismic velocity to interpret differences in bedrock fracture density with depth. We use a comparative study of Fiordland and the western Southern Alps of New Zealand to examine how differences in rock type and bedrock fracturing influence landscape morphology and landslide response to rock uplift. In both regions, slopes appear invariant with differential rock-uplift rates and slope distributions reveal modal hillslope angles of similar to 32 degrees. The majority of landslides initiate on slopes steeper than the modal hillslope angle, however, landslide magnitude-frequency distributions reveal order-of-magnitude differences between the regions, with Fiordland experiencing considerably smaller and less frequent landsliding events. Landslide-driven denudation rates of similar to 9 mm/yr in the western Southern Alps and between similar to 0.1 and 0.3 mm/yr in Fiordland approximate estimates of long-term rock-uplift rates for each region. The invariance of hillslope angles, near-normal slope distributions, predominance of landslide initiation on slopes steeper than modal values, and the apparent balance between rates of uplift and landslide-driven erosion suggest that hillslopes in both regions are at threshold angles. Their similar modal slopes further suggest that both ranges are characterized by equivalent rock-mass strength, despite striking differences in lithology. Additionally, our seismic analysis reveals nearly identical surface p-wave velocities. The unexpected equivalence of both modal slopes and surface velocities between these lithologically distinct ranges is attributed to contrasting degrees of surface fracturing that have differentially affected the intact rock properties, such that they now yield equivalent surface velocities and hillslope-scale strengths. Given that surface fractures help regulate threshold angles by modulating hillslope strength; we propose that shallow seismic velocities may provide a quantitative proxy for rock-mass strength. We define two contrasting fracture and landsliding environments. In Fiordland, dense geomorphic fracturing that is focused within the shallow subsurface appears to limit the depth and magnitude of most bedrock landslides. Conversely, in the western Southern Alps, tectonic forces produce pervasive fracturing with depth that results in larger, and deeper landslides. Our data suggest that bedrock fracturing at the Earth's surface modulates threshold hillslope angles, whereas the depth of bedrock fracturing influences the magnitude and frequency of landslide response to tectonic rock uplift. Y1 - 2010 UR - http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/journal/0012821X U6 - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.epsl.2010.07.011 SN - 0012-821X ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Bufe, Aaron A1 - Turowski, Jens M. A1 - Burbank, Douglas W. A1 - Paola, Chris A1 - Wickert, Andrew D. A1 - Tofelde, Stefanie T1 - Controls on the lateral channel-migration rate of braided channel systems in coarse non-cohesive sediment JF - Earth surface processes and landforms : the journal of the British Geomorphological Research Group N2 - Lateral movements of alluvial river channels control the extent and reworking rates of alluvial fans, floodplains, deltas, and alluvial sections of bedrock rivers. These lateral movements can occur by gradual channel migration or by sudden changes in channel position (avulsions). Whereas models exist for rates of river avulsion, we lack a detailed understanding of the rates of lateral channel migration on the scale of a channel belt. In a two-step process, we develop here an expression for the lateral migration rate of braided channel systems in coarse, non-cohesive sediment. On the basis of photographic and topographic data from laboratory experiments of braided channels performed under constant external boundary conditions, we first explore the impact of autogenic variations of the channel-system geometry (i.e. channel-bank heights, water depths, channel-system width, and channel slope) on channel-migration rates. In agreement with theoretical expectations, we find that, under such constant boundary conditions, the laterally reworked volume of sediment is constant and lateral channel-migration rates scale inversely with the channel-bank height. Furthermore, when channel-bank heights are accounted for, lateral migration rates are independent of the remaining channel geometry parameters. These constraints allow us, in a second step, to derive two alternative expressions for lateral channel-migration rates under different boundary conditions using dimensional analysis. Fits of a compilation of laboratory experiments to these expressions suggest that, for a given channel bank-height, migration rates are strongly sensitive to water discharges and more weakly sensitive to sediment discharges. In addition, external perturbations, such as changes in sediment and water discharges or base level fall, can indirectly affect lateral channel-migration rates by modulating channel-bank heights. KW - braided alluvial rivers KW - physical experiments KW - channel migration Y1 - 2019 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1002/esp.4710 SN - 0197-9337 SN - 1096-9837 VL - 44 IS - 14 SP - 2823 EP - 2836 PB - Wiley CY - Hoboken ER - TY - GEN A1 - Jobe, Jessica Ann Thompson A1 - Li, Tao A1 - Bookhagen, Bodo A1 - Chen, Jie A1 - Burbank, Douglas W. T1 - Dating growth strata and basin fill by combining 26Al/10Be burial dating and magnetostratigraphy BT - constraining active deformation in the Pamir–Tian Shan convergence zone, NW China T2 - Postprints der Universität Potsdam : Mathematisch-Naturwissenschaftliche Reihe N2 - Cosmogenic burial dating enables dating of coarse-grained, Pliocene-Pleistocene sedimentary units that are typically difficult to date with traditional methods, such as magnetostratigraphy. In the actively deforming western Tarim Basin in NW China, Pliocene-Pleistocene conglomerates were dated at eight sites, integrating Al-26/Be-10 burial dating with previously published magnetostratigraphic sections. These samples were collected from growth strata on the flanks of growing folds and from sedimentary units beneath active faults to place timing constraints on the initiation of deformation of structures within the basin and on shortening rates on active faults. These new basin-fill and growthstrata ages document the late Neogene and Quaternary growth of the Pamir and Tian Shan orogens between >5 and 1 Ma and delineate the eastward propagation of deformation at rates up to 115 km/m.y. and basinward growth of both mountain belts at rates up to 12 km/m.y. T3 - Zweitveröffentlichungen der Universität Potsdam : Mathematisch-Naturwissenschaftliche Reihe - 1044 KW - thrust belts KW - Tarim Basin KW - cosmogenic AL-26 KW - production rates KW - foreland basin KW - erosion rates KW - deep crust KW - half-life KW - NE Pamir KW - evolution Y1 - 2020 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:kobv:517-opus4-468067 SN - 1866-8372 IS - 1044 SP - 806 EP - 828 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Jobe, Jessica Ann Thompson A1 - Li, Tao A1 - Bookhagen, Bodo A1 - Chen, Jie A1 - Burbank, Douglas W. T1 - Dating growth strata and basin fill by combining Al-26/Be-10 burial dating and magnetostratigraphy BT - Constraining active deformation in the Pamir-Tian Shan convergence zone, NW China JF - Lithosphere N2 - Cosmogenic burial dating enables dating of coarse-grained, Pliocene-Pleistocene sedimentary units that are typically difficult to date with traditional methods, such as magnetostratigraphy. In the actively deforming western Tarim Basin in NW China, Pliocene-Pleistocene conglomerates were dated at eight sites, integrating Al-26/Be-10 burial dating with previously published magnetostratigraphic sections. These samples were collected from growth strata on the flanks of growing folds and from sedimentary units beneath active faults to place timing constraints on the initiation of deformation of structures within the basin and on shortening rates on active faults. These new basin-fill and growthstrata ages document the late Neogene and Quaternary growth of the Pamir and Tian Shan orogens between >5 and 1 Ma and delineate the eastward propagation of deformation at rates up to 115 km/m.y. and basinward growth of both mountain belts at rates up to 12 km/m.y. Y1 - 2018 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1130/L727.1 SN - 1941-8264 SN - 1947-4253 VL - 10 IS - 6 SP - 806 EP - 828 PB - American Institute of Physics CY - Boulder ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Sobel, Edward A1 - Oskin, Michael A1 - Burbank, Douglas W. A1 - Mikolaichuk, Alexander T1 - Exhumation of basement-cored uplifts : Example of the Kyrgyz Range quantified with apatite fission track thermochronology N2 - [1] The Kyrgyz Range, the northernmost portion of the Kyrgyzstan Tien Shan, displays topographic evidence for lateral propagation of surface uplift and exhumation. The highest, most deeply dissected segment lies in the center of the range. To the east, topography and relief decrease, and preserved remnants of a Cretaceous regional erosion surface imply minimal amounts of bedrock exhumation. The timing of exhumation of range segments defines the lateral propagation rate of the range-bounding reverse fault and quantifies the time and erosion depth needed to transform a mountain range from a juvenile to a mature morphology. New multicompositional apatite fission track ( AFT) data from three transects from the eastern Kyrgyz Range, combined with published AFT data, demonstrate that the range has propagated over 110 km eastward over the last similar to 7 - 11 Myr. On the basis of the thermal and topographic evolutionary history, we present a model for a time-varying exhumation rate driven by rock uplift and changes in erodability and the timescale of geomorphic adjustment to surface uplift. Easily eroded, Cenozoic sedimentary rocks overlying resistant basement control early, rapid exhumation and exhibit slow surface uplift rates. As increasing amounts of resistant basement are exposed, exhumation rates decrease while surface uplift rates are sustained or increase, thereby growing topography. As the range becomes high enough to cause ice accumulation and to develop steep river valleys, fluvial and glacial erosion becomes more powerful, and exhumation rates once again increase. Independently determined range-normal shortening rates also varied over time, suggesting a feedback between erosional efficiency and shortening rate Y1 - 2006 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1029/2005TC001809 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Thompson, Jessica A. A1 - Burbank, Douglas W. A1 - Li, Tao A1 - Chen, Jie A1 - Bookhagen, Bodo T1 - Late Miocene northward propagation of the northeast Pamir thrust system, northwest China JF - Tectonics N2 - Piggyback basins on the margins of growing orogens commonly serve as sensitive recorders of the onset of thrust deformation and changes in source areas. The Bieertuokuoyi piggyback basin, located in the hanging wall of the Pamir Frontal Thrust, provides an unambiguous record of the outward growth of the northeast Pamir margin in northwest China from the Miocene through the Quaternary. To reconstruct the deformation along the margin, we synthesized structural mapping, stratigraphy, magnetostratigraphy, and cosmogenic burial dating of basin fill and growth strata. The Bieertuokuoyi basin records the initiation of the Pamir Frontal Thrust and the Takegai Thrust similar to 5-6Ma, as well as clast provenance and paleocurrent changes resulting from the Pliocene-to-Recent uplift and exhumation of the Pamir to the south. Our results show that coeval deformation was accommodated on the major structures on the northeast Pamir margin throughout the Miocene to Recent. Furthermore, our data support a change in the regional kinematics around the Miocene-Pliocene boundary (similar to 5-6Ma). Rapid exhumation of NE Pamir extensional domes, coupled with cessation of the Kashgar-Yecheng Transfer System on the eastern margin of the Pamir, accelerated the outward propagation of the northeastern Pamir margin and the southward propagation of the Kashi-Atushi fold-and-thrust belt in the southern Tian Shan. This coeval deformation signifies the coupling of the Pamir and Tarim blocks and the transfer of shortening north to the Pamir frontal faults and across the quasi-rigid Tarim Basin to the southern Tian Shan Kashi-Atushi fold-and-thrust system. KW - Pamir KW - thrust tectonics KW - piggyback basin KW - growth strata KW - landscape evolution KW - cosmogenic burial dating Y1 - 2015 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1002/2014TC003690 SN - 0278-7407 SN - 1944-9194 VL - 34 IS - 3 SP - 510 EP - 534 PB - American Geophysical Union CY - Washington ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Clarke, Brian A. A1 - Burbank, Douglas W. T1 - Quantifying bedrock-fracture patterns within the shallow subsurface Implications for rock mass strength, bedrock landslides, and erodibility JF - Journal of geophysical research : Earth surface N2 - The role of bedrock fractures and rock mass strength is often considered a primary influence on the efficiency of surface processes and the morphology of landscapes. Quantifying bedrock characteristics at hillslope scales, however, has proven difficult. Here, we present a new field-based method for quantifying the depth and apparent density of bedrock fractures within the shallow subsurface based on seismic refraction surveys. We examine variations in subsurface fracture patterns in both Fiordland and the Southern Alps of New Zealand to better constrain the influence of bedrock properties in governing rates and patterns of landslides, as well as the morphology of threshold landscapes. We argue that intense tectonic deformation produces uniform bedrock fracturing with depth, whereas geomorphic processes produce strong fracture gradients focused within the shallow subsurface. Additionally, we argue that hillslope strength and stability are functions of both the intact rock strength and the density of bedrock fractures, such that for a given intact rock strength, a threshold fracture-density exists that delineates between stable and unstable rock masses. In the Southern Alps, tectonic forces have pervasively fractured intrinsically weak rock to the verge of instability, such that the entire rock mass is susceptible to failure and landslides can potentially extend to great depths. Conversely, in Fiordland, tectonic fracturing of the strong intact rock has produced fracture densities less than the regional stability threshold. Therefore, bedrock failure in Fiordland generally occurs only after geomorphic fracturing has further reduced the rock mass strength. This dependence on geomorphic fracturing limits the depths of bedrock landslides to within this geomorphically weakened zone. Y1 - 2011 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1029/2011JF001987 SN - 2169-9003 SN - 2169-9011 VL - 116 IS - 20 PB - American Geophysical Union CY - Washington ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Bufe, Aaron A1 - Bekaert, David P. S. A1 - Hussain, Ekbal A1 - Bookhagen, Bodo A1 - Burbank, Douglas W. A1 - Jobe, Jessica Ann Thompson A1 - Chen, Jie A1 - Li, Tao A1 - Liu, Langtao A1 - Gan, Weijun T1 - Temporal changes in rock uplift rates of folds in the foreland of the Tian Shan and the Pamir from geodetic and geologic data JF - Geophysical research letters N2 - Understanding the evolution of continental deformation zones relies on quantifying spatial and temporal changes in deformation rates of tectonic structures. Along the eastern boundary of the Pamir-Tian Shan collision zone, we constrain secular variations of rock uplift rates for a series of five Quaternary detachment- and fault-related folds from their initiation to the modern day. When combined with GPS data, decomposition of interferometric synthetic aperture radar time series constrains the spatial pattern of surface and rock uplift on the folds deforming at decadal rates of 1-5mm/yr. These data confirm the previously proposed basinward propagation of structures during the Quaternary. By fitting our geodetic rates and previously published geologic uplift rates with piecewise linear functions, we find that gradual rate changes over >100kyr can explain the interferometric synthetic aperture radar observations where changes in average uplift rates are greater than similar to 1 mm/yr among different time intervals (similar to 10(1), 10(4-5), and 10(5-6) years). KW - InSAR KW - Tian Shan KW - folds KW - uplift rate changes KW - geologic versus geodetic rates KW - continental neotectonics Y1 - 2017 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1002/2017GL073627 SN - 0094-8276 SN - 1944-8007 VL - 44 SP - 10977 EP - 10987 PB - American Geophysical Union CY - Washington ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Bufe, Aaron A1 - Burbank, Douglas W. A1 - Liu, Langtao A1 - Bookhagen, Bodo A1 - Qin, Jintang A1 - Chen, Jie A1 - Li, Tao A1 - Jobe, Jessica Ann Thompson A1 - Yang, Huili T1 - Variations of Lateral Bedrock Erosion Rates Control Planation of Uplifting Folds in the Foreland of the Tian Shan, NW China JF - Journal of geophysical research : Earth surface N2 - Fluvial planation surfaces, such as straths, commonly serve as recorders of climatic and tectonic changes and are formed by the lateral erosion of rivers, a process that remains poorly understood. Here we present a study of kilometer-wide, fluvially eroded, low-relief surfaces on rapidly uplifting folds in the foreland of the southwestern Tian Shan. A combination of field work, digital elevation model analysis, and dating of fluvial deposits reveals that despite an arid climate and rapid average rock-uplift rates of 1-3mm/yr, rivers cut extensive (>1-2km wide) surfaces with typical height variations of <6m over periods of >2-6kyr. The extent of this beveling varies in space and time, such that different beveling episodes affect individual structures. Between times of planation, beveled surfaces are abandoned, incised, and deformed across the folds. In a challenge to models that link strath cutting and abandonment primarily to changes in river incision rates, we demonstrate that lateral erosion rates of antecedent streams crossing the folds have to vary by more than 1 order of magnitude to explain the creation of beveled platforms in the past and their incision at the present day. These variations do not appear to covary with climate variability and might be caused by relatively small (much less than an order of magnitude) changes in sediment or water fluxes. It remains uncertain in which settings variations in lateral bedrock erosion rates predominate over changes in vertical erosion rates. Therefore, when studying fluvial planation and strath terraces, variability of both lateral and vertical erosion rates should be considered. KW - strath terraces KW - lateral erosion KW - detachment folds KW - Quaternary geochronology Y1 - 2017 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1002/2016JF004099 SN - 2169-9003 SN - 2169-9011 VL - 122 SP - 2431 EP - 2467 PB - American Geophysical Union CY - Washington ER -