Digital maps of bedrock elevation and overburden thickness (depth to bedrock) were constructed for the five boroughs of New York City by the U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the New York City Department of Design and Construction, from a compilation of historical and newly acquired data. Raster surfaces were interpolated from a point database containing data from more than 14,000 locations collected from a variety of sources. These data were collected between 1905 and 2021. These maps were constructed to supplement existing tools for the evaluation of potential construction of geothermal heat pump technology for buildings in New York City.
The bedrock underlying the study area ranges from easily weathered to very resistant to weathering. This differential susceptibility to erosion, along with numerous north-northwest-trending faults, is believed to control the shape of the bedrock surface. Glacial scouring of the bedrock during the Pleistocene Epoch is the most recent control on the topography of bedrock surfaces. Overburden thickness is an important consideration for evaluation and construction of geothermal systems.
Bedrock-surface elevation ranges from about 360 feet above sea level (in central Staten Island and northern Bronx) to 1,200 feet below sea level (in southern Queens) (North American Vertical Datum of 1988). The overburden thickness ranges from 0 foot thick at surface outcrops on Staten Island, Manhattan, and the Bronx, to 1,280 feet thick in southeastern Queens.
Citation Information
| Publication Year | 2023 |
|---|---|
| Title | Bedrock-surface elevation and overburden thickness maps of the five boroughs, New York City, New York |
| DOI | 10.3133/dr1176 |
| Authors | Laura M. DeMott, Frederick Stumm, Jason S. Finkelstein |
| Publication Type | Report |
| Publication Subtype | USGS Numbered Series |
| Series Title | Data Report |
| Series Number | 1176 |
| Index ID | dr1176 |
| Record Source | USGS Publications Warehouse |
| USGS Organization | New York Water Science Center |
Related Content
Horizontal-to-Vertical Spectral Ratio Soundings and Depth-to-Bedrock Data for New York City and Long Island, NY
Geospatial Data for Bedrock Elevation and Overburden Thickness Maps of the Five Boroughs, New York City, New York
Continuous Marine Seismic-Reflection Surveys and Derived Depth-to-Bedrock Point Data from the East River, New York City, New York
Related Content
- Data
Horizontal-to-Vertical Spectral Ratio Soundings and Depth-to-Bedrock Data for New York City and Long Island, NY
From March 2019 to September 2020, the U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the New York City Department of Design and Construction and the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation, collected horizontal-to-vertical seismic (HVSR) surveys at 140 locations in New York, Bronx, Queens, Nassau, and Suffolk counties to estimate the thickness of unconsolidated sediments and the deptGeospatial Data for Bedrock Elevation and Overburden Thickness Maps of the Five Boroughs, New York City, New York
Using a combination of public and proprietary historical construction test borings, recent exploration drilling, USGS observation wells, outcrops, and seismic measurements, a series of geospatial overlays for bedrock elevation and overburden thickness were created for the Five Boroughs of New York City, New York. Rasters were interpolated from a point elevation data set and refined using publishedContinuous Marine Seismic-Reflection Surveys and Derived Depth-to-Bedrock Point Data from the East River, New York City, New York
This data release contains data from five seismic-reflection surveys in New York’s East River between Governors Island and the Queensboro Bridge. Data are provided in the original proprietary data format, a SEGy data exchange format, and as a shape file of locations and depths to bedrock. Depths to bedrock were derived from the seismic signal travel time and an assumed speed of sound of 5,000 feet - Connect