9418062 Hodges This project will conduct mapping and geochronological studies of the Annapurna Range in central Nepal, where the processes of coeval shortening and extension occur within a convergent plate boundary setting. The extensional and strike slip faults are thought to work along with erosion to compensate for the extreme topographic gradients that would be produced by crustal shortening alone. Previous work has shown that there are miultiple generations of shortening and extesional structures in the Annapurna Range. This project will provide a reliable map of these structures, and obtain precise ages and pressure/temperature histories of the movement episodes. The results will give a better understanding of the relationship between thermal and tectonic processes in dynamically compensated orogenic regions, and will be applicable to orogenic belts worldwide.
