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| The actively deformed foreland of eastern Qilian Shan (mountains) contains well-preserved geomorphic features such as river terraces and tectonically uplifted alluvial fans, providing suitable archives for research on regional tectonic activities and paleoclimatic changes. These geomorphic surfaces are well dated by using a combination of magnetostratigraphy, electron spin resonance (ESR), thermoluminescence (TL), infra-red stimulated luminescence (IRSL), radiocarbon dating, and correlation with the well-established loess-paleosol sequences of China. Our results show that the age of river terraces is 1.24 Ma, 820~870 ka, 780 ka, 420~440 ka, 230~250 ka, 140 ka, 60 ka and 10 ka, respectively. Repetitive stratigraphic and geomorphic pattern on these terraces indicate that climate variations play a significant role in controlling regional fluvial geomorphic evolution, even within this tectonic active regions. |
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| Keywords:chronology; river terraces; Qilian Shan |
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