The Georges Bank basin is an asymmetrical, roughly oval depression approximately 175 mi long, 80 mi wide, and centered about 41°N lat., 68° W long. The deepest part of the basin may contain more than 24,000 ft of Mesozoic and Cenozoic sediments. This estimate is based on interpretation of geophysical data utilizing new velocity information from wells drilled on the western Scotian Shelf.

Overall stratigraphic similarity to rocks in the western Scotian Shelf is likely. The Lower Cretaceous and Jurassic of the Georges Bank basin probably are thicker than the western Scotian Shelf equivalents and are composed of predominantly marine units. Geophysical data indicate the existence of more than 5,000 ft of Jurassic carbonate rocks, marine shales, and consolidated sands. Salt diapirs, similar to those in the Scotian Shelf, have not been detected. Structural deformation is apparent in basement rocks in the Georges Bank basin, and consists of high-angle normal faulting. Sediment thickness is greatest in down-dropped blocks.

Estimates of recoverable oil and gas from sediments beneath the continental shelf and continental slope have been made by petroleum industry groups and federal agencies. The 30,000 cu mi of Lower Cretaceous and Jurassic sedimentary rocks in Georges Bank basin may contain a significant share of these hydrocarbon reserves, assuring the basin a favorable place among eastern North America's frontier exploration areas.

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