Rotation of the Eastern Lhasa Terrane Since the Late Cretaceous: Implications for Neo‐Tethys Oblique Convergence and Distributed Deformation in Southern Tibet

ABSTRACT

Dyke swarms preserve both emplacement geometry and subsequent tectonic overprints, providing valuable constraints on crustal kinematics. Here, we re‐evaluate Late Cretaceous tectonic rotation in the Eastern Gangdese belt of the Lhasa terrane, southern Tibet, by applying the net tectonic rotation (NTR) method to published palaeomagnetic and structural data. The preferred solution indicates a 26.2° counterclockwise vertical‐axis rotation about a pole at D  = 133.7° and I  = 38.1°, while restoring the dykes to near‐vertical initial orientations. This estimate is slightly larger than previous tilt‐corrected results, reflecting the tighter geometric constraints imposed by the NTR framework through the joint restoration of magnetization vectors and dyke orientations. We interpret the observed rotation as the cumulative result of multiple tectonic processes associated with India–Asia convergence, most plausibly including Late Cretaceous Neo‐Tethyan oblique convergence and later distributed intracontinental strike‐slip deformation. Our results provide a new quantitative constraint on the kinematic evolution of southern Tibet and further demonstrate the value of dyke‐based NTR analysis for reconstructing tectonic deformation in structurally complex orogenic systems.