The Karakoram-Kohistan Suture Zone in NW Pakistan – Hindu Kush Mountain Range

This book contains a detailed geological map of the Karakoram-Kohistan Suture Zone in Chitral (NW Pakistan), together with nine U-Pb intrusion ages on zircon. The map covers a 115 km long segment of the Karakoram-Kohistan Suture Zone between the Pakistan-Afghanistan border, west of Drosh, and Sor Laspur. Field data were geo-referenced and complemented by analysis of Landsat Enhanced Thematic Mapper + (ETM+) images. The map displays a NE-SW trending fault zone containing Karakoram-derived lithologies to the NW, Kohistan-derived lithologies to the SE and suture-related talcschists, serpentinites and ophicarbonates in between.

The new map and the age data set show that the Karakoram-Kohistan Suture Zone has a complex and long-lasting kinematic history. This information constrains the tectonic origin of the imbricate units and the kinematics of the suturing event.