Normal faulting interpreted from Landsat imagery and fault plane solutions of earthquakes suggest late Cenozoic east-west extension in the Tibetan Plateau. Volcanism and earthquake swarms could be additional evidence for extension, although they are not unique to extensional environments. Normal faulting contrasts with major thrusting along the southern boundary and major strike slip faulting near the other bounderies of Tibet. The extension may be related to western Tibet being compressed between thrusting on the south and strike slip faulting on the northwest and consequently spreading along an east-west trend.