作为第三极的青藏高原的形成是新生代以来的地球节律构造事件中最典型、最显著的新构造运动的结果,其构造地貌特征及其重要性,内部单元组成,构造演化历程及动力机制,以及对周边盆地乃至整个中国大陆的影响及远程效应至今一直是学术关注的焦点。本文重新圈定了青藏高原构造地貌范围,确立了其在全球构造中的地位。青藏高原的远程效应向南北两侧延伸,北到北冰洋,南到太平洋,总体上围绕东经105°经线穿越了整个亚洲大陆,本文采用东经105°所在经线大圆作为划分东西半球的分界线,该线以东为东半球,以西为西半球。青藏高原处于全球最大、最重要的南北向构造和东西向构造的交汇处,其内部的帕米尔高原更是区域构造的中流砥柱。青藏高原起源于帕米尔高原,它是一个印支期的热穹窿,晚期转化出一条直径200 km的异常重力柱,垂直下沉至600 km,构成一个垂向上的挤压-伸展构造,完成于白垩纪。以它为中心向东西扩展,东边三条、西边一条水平方向挤压-伸展构造。喜山期它还遭受到岩体的侵入,白垩系基本上未变形。古近纪,印度陆块与亚洲陆块碰撞,形成先压后升的雄伟的喜马拉雅造山带。以它为中心向北扩展,第四纪3个地幔枝上升,导致整个青藏高原上升。青藏高原形成与演化的深部动力机制模型:早期表现为地质体在垂向上的离心运动和在水平上的伸展运动;后期是以挤压为主的阶段,表现为地质体在垂向上的向心运动和水平上的挤压运动。从驱动力的角度,早期以热能为主驱动力,后期以重力势能为主驱动力。青藏高原的隆升及其形成演化是欧亚陆块新生代最令人瞩目的地质事件,其直接影响到岩石圈浅部及地壳表层与人类生存发展息息相关的地形地貌、能源、资源、生态、环境和灾害等,产生了具有举足轻重的近区及远程效应。3个远程效应分别是贝加尔湖裂谷、汾渭裂谷以及东非三叉裂谷的形成。本文最后对印支运动的命名和穿时问题、印支运动起止时间和类型、青藏高原是研究各类造山带的最佳基地、喜马拉雅造山带东西构造结的确定和帕米尔高原四维动力学模型的探索等5个问题进行了简单讨论。

The formation of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau as Earth's “third pole” is the most distinguishing and significant result of neotectonic movements under Earth's rhythmic tectonic events since the Cenozoic era. The characteristics and importance of tectonic landforms in the region, the tectonic regime of the plateau, the evolutionary dynamics and the impact and long-range effects of the plateau uplift on peripheral basins and even the entire Chinese subcontinent have been the focus of academic attention to this day. This article redefines the range of tectonic landforms of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, and establishes the importance of the plateau uplift to global tectonics. According to the results, the remote effects of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau and its south/north extension spans across Asian along 105°E longitude, in general, reaching the Arctic Ocean in the north and reaching the Pacific Ocean in the south. Hence, this article uses the large circle of 105°E longitude as the dividing line between the Eastern (to the east of the line) and Western Hemispheres. The Qinghai-Tibet Plateau is location at the intersection of the world's largest and most important north-south and east-west structures, and the Pamir Plateau is the backbone of regional structures. The Qinghai-Tibet Plateau originates from the Pamir Plateau, a thermal dome during the Indosinian period, which later transformed into an abnormal gravity column with a diameter of 200 km and sank 600 km vertically to form a vertical open-close structure to be completed in the Cretaceous period. From the Pamir Plateau at the center there are three horizontal compressional-extensional tectonics expanding to the east, and one to the west. During the Xishan period, the Pamir Plateau also experienced igneous intrusion, while its Cretaceous structure remained largely undeformed. In the Paleogene, the India-Asia collision formed the magnificent Himalayan orogenic belt that was first compressed and then uplifted. Expanding northward from the Himalayas three mantle branches rose during the Quaternary, causing the entire Qinghai-Tibet Plateau to rise. According to the deep dynamics model established in this article, the early stage of the plateau uplift is manly manifested by centrifugal movement of geological bodies in vertical direction and extensional movement in horizontal direction, and the later stage of mainly compression, is manifested by centripetal vertical movement and horizontal compression movement of geological bodies. In terms of driving force, thermal energy is the main driving force in the early stage and gravity potential energy in the later stage.

The uplift of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau is the most remarkable geological event of the Cenozoic era within the Eurasian continent. It has direct impacts on the shallow lithosphere and the crust's surface layer through short- and long-range effects, affecting topography, energy and natural resources, ecology, environment, and geohazards closely related to human survival and development. Under the remote effects of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau uplift the Baikal Lake Rift, the Fenwei Rift, and the East Africa Great Rift Valley are formed. Finally, five issues are briefly discussed: the naming and timing of the Indosinian movement; the timing of start/termination and types of the Indosinian movement; the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau being the best place to study various types of orogenic belts; the determination of the eastern and western tectonic structures of the Himalayan orogenic belt; and the exploration of the four-dimensional dynamics model of the Pamir Plateau.