Late Miocene/Pliocene Activity within the Main Central Thrust shear zone, Nepal Himalayas

Our understanding of plate tectonic driven processes is only as good as our knowledge of the timing of geologic events.  There are several gaps in our understanding about how plates interact, notably a general lack of consensus about the mechanisms involved when continents collide.  The Himalayan mountain range is an ideal location to study this process.

Geochronologic and Thermobarometric Constraints on the Evolution of the Main Central Thrust, central Nepal Himalaya E.J. Catlos, T. Mark Harrison, Matthew J. Kohn, Marty Grove, F.J. Ryerson, C. Manning, B.N. Upreti, in press   Journal of Geophysical Research.

Th-Pb ion microprobe dating of allanite

I developed a technique to date allanite using an ion microprobe. Allanite is an epidote group mineral that is found in a variety of rock types. The mineral is typically found cryptically zoned. Here is an example of one of our age standards!

Th-Pb ion microprobe dating of allanite E.J. Catlos, Sorena S. Soresen, T. Mark Harrison, American Mineralogist, 85, 633-648, 2000.