Canadian Shield

geographic and geologic area of Canada

The Canadian Shield is also called the Laurentian Plateau, or Bouclier canadien (French).

Canadian Shield
Stratigraphic range: Precambrian
4500–540 mya
TypeShield
Unit ofNorth American craton
Sub-unitsLaurentian Upland
Kazan[1]
Area8 000 000 km2
Location
RegionNorth America
Country Canada
 United States

The Canadian Shield is a broad region of Precambrian rock (pictured in shades of red) that encircles Hudson Bay. It spans eastern, northeastern, and east-central Canada and the upper midwestern United States.

It is a large area of exposed Precambrian igneous and high-grade metamorphic rocks (geological shield). It is the ancient geological core of the North American continent (the North American Craton or Laurentia).

A continuation of the shield is in west Greenland, to which it was once connected. In the United States the shield is mostly covered with much younger rocks and sediment.

The Canadian Shield round Hudson Bay is covered with shallow soil. Its main industrial use is for mining.

References change

  1. The Atlas of Canada. "Physiographic Regions Map" (JP2). Natural Resources Canada. Retrieved 2017-08-01.