The Hindu Kush slab break-off as revealed by deep structure and crustal deformation

Abstract Break-off of part the down-going plate during continental collision occurs due to tensile stresses built-up between deep and shallow slab, for which buoyancy is increased because continental-crust subduction. governs subsequent orogenic evolution but real-time observations are rare as it happens over geologically short times. Here we present a finite-frequency tomography, based on jointly inverted local remote earthquakes, Hindu Kush in Afghanistan, where slab break-off ongoing. We interpret our results crustal subduction top northwards-subducting Indian lithospheric whose penetration depth increases along-strike while thinning steepening. This implies that propagating laterally highest stretching rates occur final pinching-off. In crust, earthquakes geodetic data show transition from focused distributed deformation, relate variable degree crust-mantle coupling presumably associated with at depth.