New Jurassic Paleomagnetic Results from Southeastern China and Their Geological Implication.

A paleomagnetic study was carried out on late Jurassic sediments in the Nanjing area. Stepwise thermal demagnetization was used to isolate the characteristic higher temperature component (HTC) (D=354.0°, I=48.5°, a95=7.8°), which passes the reversal test. A 24.7 ± 8.7°counter-clockwise rotation relative to the Sichuan area is detected through comparing this new pole (84.4°N, 7.0°E, A95=7.7°) with other coeval poles reported from South China. This rotation was conducted by sinistral action of slip faults. These cases presenting in several areas of eastern China indicate that deformation of eastern China is under the effect of subduction from the Pacific Ocean plate. The difference on the paleolatitude of several areas across the Tan-Lu fault zone is calculated and suggests about at most 250 km offset distance after the later Jurassic. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]