WITHDRAWN Low-angle Subduction of the Indian Plate and Megathrust Geometry Below the Eastern Himalayas
Description:
WITHDRAWN Complex Faulting in the Eastern Himalayas
The Eastern Himalayas are a region of both intercontinental convergence and strike-slip faulting. The area produces large earthquakes that threaten population centers of millions of people. However, there is no accepted explanation for the combined strike-slip and thrust faults that cause the frequent earthquakes.
New Seismic Data
In a recent study by Bai et al. (2025), new data recorded on a recently deployed broadband seismic array in the region was analyzed. Installing instruments in this largely inaccessible area is often difficult so there are few previous data from this area. Using earthquake focal mechanisms, the regional stress field is found to be dominantly north-south horizontal compression, which is consistent with both the thrust and strike-slip faulting. Also, details of the structure of the Moho and the geometry of subducting Indian plate are clarified from earthquake relocation and receiver function analyses of the seismic data.
Proposed Tectonic Model
Using the results from the new seismic data, a tectonic model was proposed for the region. The model shows that the generation of earthquakes and the uplift of the broad mountains beneath the Eastern Himalayas region can be explained by the dominant north–south compression and a gentle underthrusting of the Indian plate. The subduction interface is well recognized in the Western and Central Himalayas but more complicated in the Eastern Himalayas.
References
Bai, L., Li, H., Chen, Z., Zhan, H., Li, G., Mori, J., Ding, L., 2025. Low-angle subduction of the Indian plate and megathrust geometry below the Eastern Himalayas, National Science Review, 12, nwaf460, https://doi.org/10.1093/nsr/nwaf460.
Session: New Frontiers in Seismic Observations and Modeling with Innovative Methods and Emerging Data on Earth and Other Planets [Poster]
Type: Poster
Date: 4/17/2026
Presentation Time: 08:00 AM (local time)
Presenting Author: Ling Bai
Student Presenter: No
Invited Presentation:
Poster Number: 106
Authors
Ling Bai Presenting Author Corresponding Author bailing@itpcas.ac.cn Chinese Academy of Sciences |
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WITHDRAWN Low-angle Subduction of the Indian Plate and Megathrust Geometry Below the Eastern Himalayas
Category
New Frontiers in Seismic Observations and Modeling with Innovative Methods and Emerging Data on Earth and Other Planets