McMurray Formation | |
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Stratigraphic range: | |
![]() Outcrop along the Athabasca River, ca. 1900 | |
Type | Geological formation |
Unit of | Mannville Group |
Sub-units | Upper, Middle and Lower members |
Underlies | Clearwater Formation (Wabiskaw Member) |
Overlies | Waterways Formation, Banff Formation, Wabamun Formation |
Area | 140,000 km2 (54,000 sq mi)[1] |
Thickness | up to 60 metres (200 ft)[2] |
Lithology | |
Primary | Sand, sandstone |
Other | Silt, mud, coal |
Location | |
Coordinates | 56°59′45″N 111°27′24″W / 56.995921°N 111.456612°W |
Region | ![]() |
Country | ![]() |
Type section | |
Named for | Fort McMurray |
Named by | F.H. McLearn,1917[3] |
The McMurray Formation is a stratigraphic unit of Early Cretaceous age (late Barremian to Aptian stage) of the Western Canada Sedimentary Basin in northeastern Alberta.[4] It takes the name from Fort McMurray and was first described from outcrops along the banks of the Athabasca River 5 kilometres (3.1 mi) north of Fort McMurray by F.H. McLearn in 1917.[3] It is a well-studied example of fluvial to estuarine sedimentation, and it is economically important because it hosts most of the vast bitumen resources of the Athabasca Oil Sands region.
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: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)