Innovative Research Award

Yilian Liao  
Peking University, China

Yilian Liao is affiliated with Peking University and works within the field of Earth and Planetary Sciences. The research record highlighted here includes the 2025 article Jurassic and Eocene Paleomagnetism in the Western Tethyan Himalaya: Implications for the India-Asia Collision, published in Tectonics with Umar Farooq Jadoon, Baochun Huang, Muhammad Waqar Azeem, Ahsan Ali Khan, Tehseen Zafar, and Hongliang Lu. The article examines paleomagnetic evidence from the western Tethyan Himalaya and its implications for reconstructing the India–Asia collision history. [1]

Abstract

The featured study investigates Jurassic and Eocene paleomagnetism in the western Tethyan Himalaya to clarify the timing and geodynamic development of the India–Asia collision. The research analyzes the Samanasuk and Shekhan formations and distinguishes between remagnetized and primary magnetic signals. The study reports that the Jurassic Samanasuk Formation underwent chemical remagnetization around 40 Ma, whereas the Eocene Shekhan Formation retains primary remanence. The resulting paleolatitudinal estimates support a multistage model for India–Asia convergence and provide evidence relevant to Himalayan–Tibetan tectonic reconstruction. [1] [2]

Keywords

• Paleomagnetism
• Tethyan Himalaya
• India–Asia collision
• Rock magnetism

Introduction

The Tethyan Himalaya constitutes a northern continental component of the India Plate and is central to understanding the Cenozoic development of the Himalayan–Tibetan orogen. Paleomagnetic observations can provide constraints on ancient latitude, plate movement, and collision chronology, although secondary magnetization can complicate geological interpretation. [2]

The featured 2025 Tectonics article addresses this problem through analysis of Jurassic and Eocene formations in the western Tethyan Himalaya. Its findings contribute to discussion of whether India–Asia convergence occurred as a single event or through multiple tectonic stages. [1]

Research Profile

The available profile identifies Yilian Liao with Peking University and the Earth and Planetary Sciences subject area. The Scopus record supplied for this recognition profile lists 2 documents, 2 citations, and an h-index of 1. These bibliometric indicators represent the supplied record and should be interpreted in relation to publication age, field norms, collaboration patterns, and database coverage.

Research Contributions

The featured publication contributes paleomagnetic evidence for reconstructing the western Tethyan Himalaya during the Jurassic and Eocene. The authors report a positive fold test and distinguish a chemically remagnetized Jurassic signal from primary Eocene remanence. The study estimates a paleolatitudinal difference of approximately 12.6° ± 5.5° between the Tethyan Himalaya and the India Craton around 50 Ma, an observation interpreted in the context of a multistage India–Asia collision model. [1]

Publications

Jadoon, U. F., Huang, B., Azeem, M. W., Liao, Y., Khan, A. A., Zafar, T., & Lu, H. (2025). Jurassic and Eocene Paleomagnetism in the Western Tethyan Himalaya: Implications for the India-Asia Collision.

Research Impact

The research has relevance to paleomagnetism, regional tectonics, and reconstruction of the India–Asia collision. By separating primary remanence from later chemical remagnetization, the study illustrates the importance of evaluating magnetic reliability before using paleomagnetic data for plate-reconstruction models. Its reported paleolatitudinal constraints provide a quantitative basis for examining stages of convergence between the Indian and Asian continental domains. [1] The supplied Scopus record reports 2 citations for the researcher profile, while the featured article itself is separately indexed in scholarly databases. [3]

Award Suitability

For the Innovative Research Award category associated with the Global Innovation Technologist Awards, the featured work provides a documented example of research addressing a defined geological and geodynamic problem through paleomagnetic analysis. Its relevance to Earth and Planetary Sciences, methodological focus, quantitative paleolatitudinal results, and contribution to interpretations of the India–Asia collision provide reasonable scholarly grounds for consideration. Award suitability, however, remains subject to the formal eligibility and evaluation criteria of the awarding organization.

Conclusion

Yilian Liao’s research profile is represented here through a peer-reviewed contribution to paleomagnetic and tectonic research concerning the western Tethyan Himalaya. The 2025 Tectonics article provides evidence distinguishing remagnetization from primary magnetic signals and develops paleolatitudinal constraints relevant to models of India–Asia convergence. [1] Within the supplied bibliometric record, the publication represents a focused contribution to Earth and Planetary Sciences and a relevant basis for academic recognition.

External Links

• Scopus Author ID 59897784500
• Global Innovation Technologist Awards

References

1. Jadoon, U. F., Huang, B., Azeem, M. W., Liao, Y., Khan, A. A., Zafar, T., & Lu, H. (2025). Jurassic and Eocene Paleomagnetism in the Western Tethyan Himalaya: Implications for the India-Asia Collision.
2. Peking University Institutional Repository. (2025). Jurassic and Eocene Paleomagnetism in the Western Tethyan Himalaya: Implications for the India-Asia Collision.
3. Elsevier. (n.d.). Scopus author details: Yilian Liao, Author ID 59897784500. Scopus.
   https://www.scopus.com/pages/authors/59897784500
4. American Geophysical Union. (2025). Jurassic and Eocene Paleomagnetism in the Western Tethyan Himalaya: Implications for the India-Asia Collision. Tectonics, 44(8).
5. Jadoon, U. F., Huang, B., Azeem, M. W., Liao, Y., Khan, A. A., Zafar, T., & Lu, H. (2024). Jurassic and Eocene Paleomagnetism in the Western Tethyan Himalaya: Implications for the India-Asia Collision [Dataset]. Dryad.
   https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.2rbnzs7z9