Early Miocene elevation in northern Tibet estimated by palaeobotanical evidence

A rare early Miocene barberry (Berberis) leaf fossil discovered in the Hoh-Xil Basin, northern Tibet, suggests that the basin's elevation was between 1395 and 2931 meters approximately 17 million years ago. This implies a significant uplift of around 2-3 kilometers since then, contradicting earlier hypotheses that proposed northern Tibet had already reached or surpassed its current elevation before the Miocene epoch. Researchers estimated the palaeoelevation by comparing the fossil's environmental niche with its nearest living relatives and adjusting for global temperature differences during the Miocene. This finding provides critical insights into the uplift history of northern Tibet, which has implications for understanding the plateau's role in shaping Asia's topography, monsoon patterns, and global climate dynamics.

Sun, B., Wang, Y.-F., Li, C.-S., Yang, J., Li, J.-F., Li, Y.-L., Deng, T., Wang, S.-Q., Zhao, M., Spicer, R. A., Ferguson, D. K., & Mehrotra, R. C. (2015). Early Miocene elevation in northern Tibet estimated by palaeobotanical evidence. Scientific Reports, 5(1). https://doi.org/10.1038/srep10379