Introduction to special collection “geological, paleoclimate, and neo-tectonic controls on the evolution of Philippines-Taiwan island arc systems”

Abstract This Special Collection comprises twenty-one papers on the tectonic, magmatic, paleoclimate, and environmental evolution of the Taiwan-Philippine arc system and the Japanese islands. The Collection mainly focuses on the tectonic, geological, and eruptive histories of the Philippines and Taiwan. Several papers investigate the complex geological and tectonic histories of Taiwan and the Philippines, with an emphasis on crustal thickness, active tectonics, island-arc formation, and basin development. Other papers examine rapid exhumation, erosion, and seismic and aseismic motions resulting from convergence between the Eurasian and Philippine Sea Plates in this region. By integrating advanced geochronological dating, isotopic analyses, and geophysical data, these papers address fundamental questions about crustal growth, fault behavior, paleoenvironmental shifts, and related topics in the Taiwan-Philippine arc system.