Reply to comment by Zhao et al. on Hydrothermal events in the Linzizong Group: Implications for Paleogene exhumation and paleoaltimetry of the southern Tibetan Plateau

In their comment on our publication about the discovery of two hydrothermal events in the Linzizong Group (Huang et al., 2022), Zhao et al. question the reliability of our thermochronologic data and the existence of hydrothermal events experienced by these rocks. They argue that their field and microscopic observations, as well as paleomagnetic studies, indicate that the lower Linzizong volcanic rocks preserve primary igneous textures and paleomagnetic signals. In this reply, we address these issues raised by Zhao et al., provide more field evidence, and conduct additional analyses that show that their assertions are not supported. We emphasize that hydrothermal events related to magmatism and deformation have systematically induced resetting of thermochronologic, stable isotopic, and paleomagnetic records of the lower Linzizong Group in the Linzhou basin of southern Tibet.

Automated summary

In their comment, Zhao et al. question the reliability of our thermochronologic data and the existence of hydrothermal events in the Linzizong Group. They argue that their observations and paleomagnetic studies indicate the preservation of primary igneous textures. However, our reply provides more evidence and analyses that contradict their claims, highlighting the systematic resetting of records due to hydrothermal events.