Bedrock geological map of Canada 1:5 000 000

The map displays bedrock formations at or near the surface of the land, on the sea floor above the continental crust that forms the Canadian landmass, and oceanic crust surrounding the landmass. The bedrock units are grouped and coloured according to geological age and composition. The colours of offshore units and oceanic crust are paler and more generalized than those on land, although the constituent units offshore are still easily discernible from their dashed boundaries. This colour design, coupled with the use of a white buffer zone at the coast allows the coastline of Canada to be readily distinguished and still show the grand geological architecture of the Canadian landmass.

The map also shows major faults that have disrupted the Earth's crust, onshore and offshore, and a variety of special geological features such as kimberlite pipes, which locally contain diamonds, impact structures suspected to have been caused by meteorites, and extinct and active spreading centres in the surrounding oceans.

Date ( RI_367 ): 1996-09-01

Date ( RI_366 ): 1996-09-01

RI_414

Government of Canada; Natural Resources Canada; Geological Survey of Canada

RI_415

Government of Canada; Natural Resources Canada; Geological Survey of Canada - John Oliver Wheeler

Canada

RI_413

Government of Canada; Natural Resources Canada; Geological Survey of Canada - John Oliver Wheeler

Canada

RI_409

Government of Canada; Natural Resources Canada; Geological Survey of Canada - Geological Survey of Canada

601 Booth Street , Ottawa , Ontario , K1A 0E8 , Canada

voice; 1 (613) 9950947
https://www.nrcan.gc.ca/science-and-data/research-centres-and-labs/geological-survey-canada/17100

Presentation form: mapDigital; carteNumérique RI_391

Name: A-Series Map

Issue identification: 1860A

Other citation details: Wheeler, J.O., Hoffman, P.F., Card, K.D., Davidson, A., Sanford, B.V., Okulitch, A.V., and Roest, W.R. (comp.) 1997: Geological Map of Canada, Geological Survey of Canada, Map D1860A.

Purpose: The Geological Map of Canada has many uses, from an educational tool for teaching the geology of Canada to a template from which other national thematic maps can be derived. Examples of such thematic maps include: a tectonic map depicting the geological building blocks and related structures (faults and folds) that resulted in the assembly of the Canadian landmass and a metallogenic map showing the distribution and nature of important mineral deposits and their genetic relationships to their host geological formations. The new Geological Map of Canada is also the framework against which other national maps and databases, such as the Gravity Map, Magnetic Anomaly Map, Seismicity (earthquake risk), and various kinds of regional geochemical maps may be compared and interpreted.

The digital version of the new Geological Map of Canada opens up new frontiers for learning about Canada and the great wealth and potential of its landmass and offshore regions. Not only will it provide the opportunity for geological patterns and related geological relationships to be studied at the scale of the Canadian landmass, but it will form the foundation for the digital national geoscience information base.

Status: historicalArchive; archiveHistorique RI_594

Maintenance and update frequency: notPlanned; nonPlanifié RI_542

GSC Keywords Vocabulary - Thesaurus Thésaurus - vocabulaire de mots-clé de la CGC ( RI_528 )

Bedrock Geology

Government of Canada Core Subject Thesaurus Thésaurus des sujets de base du gouvernement du Canada ( RI_528 )

Geological maps
Geology

Use limitation: No constraint

Use limitation: Open Government Licence - Canada (http://open.canada.ca/en/open-government-licence-canada)

Access constraints: licence; license RI_606

Use constraints: otherRestrictions; autresRestrictions RI_609

Spatial representation type: vector; vecteur RI_635

Denominator: 5000000

Metadata language: eng; CAN

Character set: utf8 RI_458

Topic category

Geoscientific information

Environment description: Geospatial data

Description: Canada

Begin date: 1996-08-31

End date: 1996-08-31

Reference system identifier: http://www.epsg-registry.org/ / EPSG:4269 / 6.14

Geometric object type: ;

Distribution format

SHP ( unknown )

RI_412

Government of Canada; Natural Resources Canada; Geological Survey of Canada - GSC Quebec - Eric Boisvert

490, rue de la Couronne, 3e étage , Québec , Québec , G1K 9A9 , Canada

voice; 1 (418) 6543705

RI_414

Government of Canada; Natural Resources Canada; Geological Survey of Canada

OnLine resource: Carte géologique de la roche en place du Canada 1:5 000 000 ( HTTPS )
Dataset;HTML;eng

OnLine resource: Bedrock geological map of Canada 1:5 000 000 ( HTTPS )
Dataset;HTML;eng

Hierarchy level: dataset; jeuDonnées RI_622

Description: Title: General process description -- Description: The map was compiled from published and unpublished maps and reports of the Geological Survey of Canada, Provincial Geological Surveys, the Yukon and Northwest Territories Geology Divisions of Indian and Northern Affairs Canada. Parts of U.S.A. were derived from maps of the United States Geological Survey. The resulting map is more intricate and complex than that published in 1969. This reflects completion of the helicopter-assisted reconnaissance mapping of Canada in 1978 and recent more detailed geological mapping by the Geological Survey of Canada and Provincial and Territorial surveys - much of it under Mineral Development Agreements and through the GSC's National Geoscience Mapping Program (NATMAP). The compilation also used data from extensive gravity surveys by the former Earth Physics Branch, now part of the GSC, and from aeromagnetic surveys. The quality and accuracy of the map has been increased as a result of improved methods of dating geological units, notably from advances in micropaleontology (conodonts and radiolarian) and in radioactive dating methods employing the isotopes of uranium and lead. Altogether the new map has benefitted from a more accurate depiction and correlation of geological formations and better understanding of their natural relations. Similarly, extensive marine geoscience surveys since 1969 by the GSC now allow the geology on land to be extended across the Great Lakes and offshore, and to display the age, structure, and patterns of oceanic crust surrounding Canada.

Description: The map was compiled from published and unpublished maps and reports of the Geological Survey of Canada, Provincial Geological Surveys, the Yukon and Northwest Territories Geology Divisions of Indian and Northern Affairs Canada. Parts of U.S.A. were derived from maps of the United States Geological Survey. The resulting map is more intricate and complex than that published in 1969. This reflects completion of the helicopter-assisted reconnaissance mapping of Canada in 1978 and recent more detailed geological mapping by the Geological Survey of Canada and Provincial and Territorial surveys - much of it under Mineral Development Agreements and through the GSC's National Geoscience Mapping Program (NATMAP). The compilation also used data from extensive gravity surveys by the former Earth Physics Branch, now part of the GSC, and from aeromagnetic surveys. The quality and accuracy of the map has been increased as a result of improved methods of dating geological units, notably from advances in micropaleontology (conodonts and radiolarian) and in radioactive dating methods employing the isotopes of uranium and lead. Altogether the new map has benefitted from a more accurate depiction and correlation of geological formations and better understanding of their natural relations. Similarly, extensive marine geoscience surveys since 1969 by the GSC now allow the geology on land to be extended across the Great Lakes and offshore, and to display the age, structure, and patterns of oceanic crust surrounding Canada.