Zircon Geochronology and Provenance Constraints on the Amdo‐Southern Qiangtang Collision in the Tibetan Plateau, China

Abstract The eastern segment of the Bangong‐Nujiang suture zone, particularly the Amdo region, represents one of the most tectonically complex areas in the Tibetan Plateau, China. The timing of the collision between the Amdo micro‐block and southern Qiangtang Terrane remains debated. The evolution of the Quehala and Amdo formations is essential for constraining the timing and tectonic setting of the Amdo‐southern Qiangtang collision, as they preserve key provenance and sedimentary records. Nevertheless, these formations have been largely overlooked in previous research. This study uses zircon U‐Pb geochronology to precisely date the Amdo Formation in the northern Amdo micro‐block and employs multiple provenance analysis methods to reconstruct the source‐sink system of the northern Amdo basin. U‐Pb dating of tuff samples reveals a sedimentary age of 175.6 ± 0.8 Ma for the Amdo Formation. Additionally, provenance analysis show that the primary source of the Amdo Formation is the southern Qiangtang Terrane, while the source of the Quehala Formation mainly derives from the Amdo micro‐block. The spatiotemporal transformation of sedimentary sources from the Quehala Formation to the Amdo Formation indicates that the collision between the Amdo micro‐block and the southern Qiangtang Terrane occurred during the late Early Jurassic.