First Late Cambrian Paleomagnetic Results From the Oulongbuluke Terrane, Northern Tibetan Plateau: Implications for the Paleogeography of the Proto‐Tethys Ocean.

The Early Paleozoic paleolatitudinal position of the terranes in the northern Tibetan Plateau is the key to unraveling the evolution of the Proto‐Tethys Ocean. We present the first Late Cambrian paleomagnetic results from the Oulongbuluke terrane (OT), in the northern Tibetan Plateau. The mean paleomagnetic direction for 16 sites is Ds = 196.2°, Is = −36.9° with κs = 31.5, α95 = 6.7°, corresponding to a paleopole at 68.2°S/51.9°E with dp/dm = 4.6°/7.8°. Rock magnetic and petrologic analyses demonstrate the primary origin of the magnetic mineralogy. This paleomagnetic result defines the Late Cambrian paleolatitude of the OT as 20.6 ± 4.6°S (reference point: 37.2°N/96.6°E). Combined paleomagnetic and geological evidence suggests that the terranes in the northern Tibetan Plateau were located to the northwest of the Indian plate of Gondwana during the Late Cambrian. Plain Language Summary: The Proto‐Tethys Ocean underwent a complex process of collision and amalgamation of the terranes in the northern Tibetan Plateau during the Early Paleozoic. Unraveling the Early Paleozoic paleogeography of these terranes is important for understanding the evolution of the Proto‐Tethys Ocean and is critical for reconstructing the formation of East Asia. However, quantitative constraints on the Early Paleozoic paleogeographic position of the terranes in the northern Tibetan Plateau are limited. Paleomagnetism is the only effective approach for directly constraining the paleolatitude of terranes. We conducted a paleomagnetic study of the Late Cambrian strata in the Oulongbuluke terrane (OT), northern Tibetan Plateau. The results define the paleolatitude of 20.6 ± 4.6 °S for the OT during the Late Cambrian. Based on paleomagnetic data and geological evidence, we also present a tentative paleogeographic reconstruction of the terranes in the northern Tibetan Plateau and the Proto‐Tethys Ocean in a global setting during the Late Cambrian. Key Points: We report the first Late Cambrian paleomagnetic results for the Oulongbuluke terrane (OT)The OT was located at ∼20.6°S during the Late CambrianThe terranes in the northern Tibetan Plateau may have been located northwest of the Indian plate during the Late Cambrian [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]