Precise temperature estimation in the Tibetan crust from seismic detection of the α-β quarts transition

In the deep crust, temperature, which is among the key parameters controlling lithospheric dynamics, is inferred by extrapolation from the surface using several assumptions that may fail in regions of active tectonics and fluid migration. In the rare case that temperatures of 700 °C or higher are exceeded in the upper and middle continental crust composed of quartz-rich felsic rocks, the α-β quartz transition (ABQT) will occur, generating a measurable seismic signature and offering the possibility for precisely estimating temperature from the known ABQT phase diagram. Here it is shown that all expected seismic features of the ABQT are met by the boundary between the upper and middle crust below the INDEPTH III profile in central Tibet. This finding implies that a temperature of 700 °C is achieved at a depth of 18 km under he southern Qiangtang block, which agrees with the depth to the top of a high electrical conductivity anomaly, likely representing partially melted crust. To the south in the northern Lhasa block, the ABQT is at 32 km depth, corresponding to a temperature of 800 °C. It thus appears that this seismic boundary representing the ABQT is the result of recent geologic processes rather than being a lithollogic boundary.