Jon Trevelyan (UK)
This e book has one thing of an aspirational, fairly than sensible, really feel to it. Nonetheless, there is no such thing as a doubt – in my thoughts anyway – that it’s the finest e book on the geology of the Himalaya I’ve learn. It’s written with a pleasant gentle contact, with some humour. And it covers way over simply geology – the place acceptable, it consists of historical past, particularly concerning the exploration of the subcontinent, and Asian tradition.
instance of the latter is the chapter on the holy rivers of the subcontinent, through which the creator weaves spirituality and geology collectively, such that it reads each like a travelogue and journey information. However, after all, it additionally gives an evidence of the geology within the context of this fascinating science lab of plate tectonics. Maybe, most significantly, it conjures up the reader to truly go there. In truth, this is likely one of the finest GA guides that I learn from cowl to cowl.
The textual content follows the route of what’s referred to on this information as a ‘megatransect’, from the Indian Plate throughout the Himalayan Mountains to the Tibetan Plateau on the Eurasian Plate. In so doing, it takes you thru the Siwaliks of southern Nepal after which to a piece up the Kali Gandaki River of west central Nepal, a tributary of the Ganges River to the west of Annapurna. Right here, the metamorphic and sedimentary rocks of the Lesser, Better and Tethyan Himalayan Collection may be seen, as you progress northwards. There are additionally diversions to Mount Manaslu in Nepal, and to Bhutan, which collectively present a greater understanding of the leucogranites of the Better Himalayan Collection.
The creator additionally takes a megatransect to Ladakh, the place volcanic and deep-water sedimentary rocks of the Indus Tsangpo Suture Zone may be seen, along with proof of deep burial down a subduction zone. He then looks at Tibetan terranes on the Eurasian Plate, where granitic batholiths can be viewed, along with collisional molasse in Ladakh’s Indus Basin, lying over the Indus Tsangpo Suture Zone. Finally, he heads south-eastwards to similar Oligo-Miocene conglomerates and travels along the suture to the sacred Mount Kailas.
There is also a diversion to examine Quaternary sediments in the Kali Gandaki valley and another to look at the evolution of the four holy rivers, namely, the Indus, the Yarlung-Tsangpo-Brahmaputra, the Sutlej and the Ganges.
At each stage of the megatransect there is a brief explanation for non-specialists of the geology and processes involved (for example, metamorphism and plate tectonics). In fact, it is a very easy read for amateur geologists and is definitely worth reading, as I did, from cover to cover. The pictures are great, as are the full-colour diagrams.
Daniel Clark-Lowes got his first degree in Natural Sciences from Cambridge University, specialising in geology, and later received a PhD from Imperial College for his research on sedimentary rocks in southwest Libya, leading to a career in the oil industry. He also gave related training courses, and published scientific papers and books. At the same time, he was enjoying bagging Alpine peaks, leading to an interest in the geology of Switzerland and then the Himalayas. In terms of the latter, he has visited the region 15 times, and written articles and given talks on the geology of the region.
A Geological Field Guide to the Himalaya in India, Nepal, Bhutan and Tibet (Guide No. 76), by Dr Daniel Clark-Lowes, The Geologists’ Association, London (2022), paperback (176 pages), ISBN: 978-1-9996757-3-8.
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