HR: 0830h
AN: T21C-0467    [PDF]
TI: A subdued topography among the high relief, tectonic-active island ---registered middle to late Pleistocene climatic changes in Taiwan
AU: Liew, P
EM: liewpm@ccms.ntu.edu.tw
AU: * Chen, B
EM: r90224202@ntu.edu.tw
AB: The island of Taiwan is geographically in the frontal zone of the Asian monsoon region, and is geologically located in the collision boundary between the Philippine Sea plate and the Eurasian plate. A Holocene uplifting rate of up to 10mm/yr in the eastern coast has been documented in this high relief mountainous island, and active folds and thrusts are common. When tracing the rivers backward to the mountain, one often encounters a subdued topography, covered by primary lateritic soil, above the higher river terrace and below the rugged mountains, and is referred to as lateritic highland (LH) by a previous author. Studies in paleoclimatology and geomorphology enable us to refine the possible age and origin of this remarkable topography. The penultimate glacial-interglacial cycle and the last interglacial period should be the major interval for the development of lateritic highland. LH may be looked upon as a reference surface for studying the dynamic evolution of the tectonic landscape of Taiwan. It shows that the lower uplifting rate is the most important factor for the preservation of the LH topography in this island. Based on the morphology of LH, different deformation styles are recognized in north and south Chiayi (near tropic of cancer), in western Taiwan. To the north, platforms originating from piedmont LH are well developed, whereas to the south, platforms and piedmont LH are hardly visible. This contrast is probably due to a lithological variance between them.
DE: 1824 Geomorphology (1625)
SC: Tectonophysics [T]
MN: 2003 Fall Meeting