THE STRUCTURE OF THE LESSER HIMALAYA OF CENTRAL NEPAL

We present detrital zircon U-Pb age spectra, a geologic map and a balanced cross-section from a portion of the Lesser Himalaya of central Nepal, bounded by the town of Khairenitar in the west, the Kali Gandaki in the south, the town of Mugling in the east, and the town of Purkot in the north. From north to south, the major structural features in the area are (1) the Lesser Himalayan duplex, consisting of both upper and lower Lesser Himalayan Sequence rocks; (2) the Ramgarh Thrust sheet; (3) a synformal klippe of Greater Himalayan Sequence rocks; (4) a second appearance of the Ramgarh Thrust sheet; and (5) low-grade upper Lesser Himalayan Sequence rocks carried in the hanging wall of the Main Boundary Thrust. Future work will include zircon (U-Th)/He and mica ⁴⁰Ar/³⁹Ar thermochronology to establish timing of the tectonic events in the area.