Considering Earth's long geological history, the Tibetan Plateau is a never-before-seen geographical feature (see figure). We are living during a unique time when a landmass of a million square miles (2.6 million square kilometers) manifests an average elevation of 15,100 feet (4,600 meters) above sea level. This very high average elevation explains the Tibetan Plateau's appellation as the "roof of the world." Recent research reveals that construction of this "roof" appears to be purposely designed for humanity's benefit.

Himalaya_composite
Figure: Satellite Image of the Tibetan Plateau
The Himalayan mountain range stretches across the bottom of the image. Slightly left of top center is the Taklamakan Desert. In between is the Tibetan Plateau.
Diagram credit: NASA

In my books Improbable Planet1 and Weathering Climate Change,2 I wrote about the Tibetan Plateau's crucial role in initiating our current ice age cycle. In those books I also describe the benefits we accrue from being in an ice age cycle at a time when the Sun, brighter than it has been during life's history, is in its most stable luminosity phase.3

Now, a research study by fourteen geologists and ecologists from China, the United Kingdom, the United States, and Germany led by Shu-Feng Li reveals yet another benefit we garner from the unprecedented and continuing rise of the Tibetan Plateau.4 Before describing their research findings, let me first address what initiated the rise of the Tibetan Plateau.

Colliding Plates Have Raised the Plateau

The high-velocity tectonic collision (20 centimeters per year) between the Indian subcontinent tectonic plate and the Eurasian tectonic plate that began about 50 million years ago created the Himalayan mountain range and pushed up the region north of the Himalayas. The collision is ongoing. It has slowed down to 5 centimeters per year, a rate that nevertheless is more than twice as fast as normally rapid plate tectonic movements.

A Rising Plateau Changed Vegetation

Li's research team used numerical modeling to conduct 18 sensitivity experiments based on different Tibetan topographies representing various late Paleogene (a period spanning 66 to 23 million years ago) to early Neogene (23 to 2.6 million years ago) conditions. Their goal was to directly examine the impact of the rise of the Tibetan Plateau on the development of vegetation observed to have occurred in eastern and southeastern Asia throughout the past 50 million years. 5 They used a sophisticated atmosphere model known as HadAM3 to reach their goal.6

The team established that the ongoing rise of the Tibetan Plateau, especially that part of the plateau in north and northeastern Tibet, dramatically changed vegetation in eastern China, southeast Asia, and India by altering the Asian monsoon systems. In particular, the Tibetan Plateau rise induced a huge precipitation increase, especially in what was the dry winter season.

Two important vegetation changes occurred. The first was a transition from deciduous (leaf-shedding) broadleaf to evergreen (non-leaf-shedding) broadleaf vegetation throughout China, India, and Southeast Asia. The second was a huge increase in plant biodiversity across all of Southeast Asia.

The team's research reveals significant design implications. Without these two vegetation changes, it would not be possible for half the world's human population of 7.8 billion people to live in China, India, and Southeast Asia with adequate indigenous food resources. Their analysis also provides evidence that Earth's geological history has been exquisitely fine-tuned to make possible the existence of billions of human beings and the purpose for which they were created.

Tibet_a_walk_into_no_where

Featured image: Tibetan Plateau Landscape
Credit: StateStreet, Creative Commons Attribution

Check out more from Reasons to Believe @Reasons.org

Endnotes
  1. Hugh Ross, Improbable Planet (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Books, 2016), 203–04.
  2. Hugh Ross, Weathering Climate Change (Covina, CA: RTB Press, 2020), 137–40, 145–47, 236.
  3. Ross, Improbable Planet, 209–12; Ross, Weathering Climate Change, 81–93.
  4. Shu-Feng Li et al., "Orographic Evolution of Northern Tibet Shaped Vegetation and Plant Diversity in Eastern Asia," Science Advances 7, no. 5 (January 27, 2021): id. eabc7741, doi:10.1126/sciadv.abc7741.
  5. Dale Lunt, Rachel Flecker, and Peter D. Clift, "The Impacts of Tibetan Uplift on Palaeoclimate Proxies," Geological Society of London Special Publication 342 (August 2010): 279–91, doi:10.1144/SP342.16; Ran Zhang, Dabang Jiang, and Zhongshi Zhang, "Vegetation and Ocean Feedbacks on the Asian Climate Response to the Uplift of the Tibetan Plateau," Journal of Geophysical Research: Atmospheres 124, no. 12 (June 27, 2019): 6237–41, doi:10.1029/2019JD030503.
  6. Paul J. Valdes et al., "The BRIDGE HadCM3 Family of Climate Models: HadCM3@Bristol v1.0," Geoscientific Model Development Discussions 10 (February 2017): 3715–43, doi: 10.5194/gmd-2017-16.

About The Author

Dr. Hugh Ross

Reasons to Believe emerged from my passion to research, develop, and proclaim the most powerful new reasons to believe in Christ as Creator, Lord, and Savior and to use those new reasons to reach people for Christ. I also am eager to equip Christians to engage, rather than withdraw from or attack, educated non-Christians. One of the approaches I’ve developed, with the help of my RTB colleagues, is a biblical creation model that is testable, falsifiable, and predictive. I enjoy constructively integrating all 66 books of the Bible with all the science disciplines as a way to discover and apply deeper truths. 1 Peter 3:15–16 sets my ministry goal, "Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect, keeping a clear conscience." Hugh Ross launched his career at age seven when he went to the library to find out why stars are hot. Physics and astronomy captured his curiosity and never let go. At age seventeen he became the youngest person ever to serve as director of observations for Vancouver's Royal Astronomical Society. With the help of a provincial scholarship and a National Research Council (NRC) of Canada fellowship, he completed his undergraduate degree in physics (University of British Columbia) and graduate degrees in astronomy (University of Toronto). The NRC also sent him to the United States for postdoctoral studies. At Caltech he researched quasi-stellar objects, or "quasars," some of the most distant and ancient objects in the universe. Not all of Hugh's discoveries involved astrophysics. Prompted by curiosity, he studied the world’s religions and "holy books" and found only one book that proved scientifically and historically accurate: the Bible. Hugh started at religious "ground zero" and through scientific and historical reality-testing became convinced that the Bible is truly the Word of God! When he went on to describe for others his journey to faith in Jesus Christ, he was surprised to discover how many people believed or disbelieved without checking the evidence. Hugh's unshakable confidence that God's revelations in Scripture and nature do not, will not, and cannot contradict became his unique message. Wholeheartedly encouraged by family and friends, communicating that message as broadly and clearly as possible became his mission. Thus, in 1986, he founded science-faith think tank Reasons to Believe (RTB). He and his colleagues at RTB keep tabs on the frontiers of research to share with scientists and nonscientists alike the thrilling news of what's being discovered and how it connects with biblical theology. In this realm, he has written many books, including: The Fingerprint of God, The Creator and the Cosmos, Beyond the Cosmos, A Matter of Days, Creation as Science, Why the Universe Is the Way It Is, and More Than a Theory. Between writing books and articles, recording podcasts, and taking interviews, Hugh travels the world challenging students and faculty, churches and professional groups, to consider what they believe and why. He presents a persuasive case for Christianity without applying pressure. Because he treats people's questions and comments with respect, he is in great demand as a speaker and as a talk-radio and television guest. Having grown up amid the splendor of Canada's mountains, wildlife, and waterways, Hugh loves the outdoors. Hiking, trail running, and photography are among his favorite recreational pursuits - in addition to stargazing. Hugh lives in Southern California with his wife, Kathy, and two sons.



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