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Geologic timescale

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A timeline of geologic periods in accordance with the dates and nomenclature proposed by the International Commission on Stratigraphy.

(not shown to scale)


Years Ago3,6 Epoch Period/Age4,5 Era Eon Major Events
Present day Holocene Quaternary Cenozoic Phanerozoic End of ice age and rise of modern civilization
11430 Pleistocene Extinction of many large mammals. Evolution of fully modern humans
1.81 million Pliocene Tertiary Neogene  
5.33 million Miocene
23.0 million Oligocene Paleogene
37.2 million Eocene Appearance of first "modern" mammals
55.8 million Paleocene  
65.5 million*   Cretaceous Mesozoic Dinosaurs reach peak, become extinct. Primitive placental mammals
146 million Jurassic Marsupial mammals, first birds, first flowering plants
200 million Triassic First dinosaurs, Egg-laying mammals, breakup of Pangea into Gondwana and Laurasia
251 million* Permian Paleozoic Permian extinction event- 95% of life on Earth becomes extinct
299 million Carboniferous1 Pennsylvanian Abundant insects, first reptiles, coal forests
318 million Mississippian Large primitive trees, first land vertebrates
359 million Devonian First amphibians, clubmosses and horsetails appear, progymnosperms (first seed bearing plants) appear
416 million* Silurian First vascular land plants, first jawed fish
443 million* Ordovician Invertebrates dominant, first land plants
488 million* Cambrian Major diversification of life in the Cambrian explosion
542 million* Ediacaran Neoproterozoic Proterozoic2 First multi-celled animals
630 million*,8 Cryogenian Possible snowball Earth period, Rodinia begins to break up
850 million Tonian First acritarch radiation
1.0 billion Stennian Mesoproterozoic Formation of Rodinia
1.2×109 Ectasian  
1.4×109 Calymmian
1.6×109 Statherian Paleoproterozoic First complex single-celled life
1.8×109 Orosirian Transition to oxygen atmosphere
2.05×109 Rhyacian  
2.3×109 Siderian
2.5×109   Neoarchean Archaean2
2.8×109 Mesoarchean
3.2×109 Paleoarchean
3.6×109 Eoarchean Simple single-celled life
3.8×109   Hadean2,7 4.1×109 - Oldest known rock;
4.4×109 - Oldest known mineral;
4.57×109 - Formation of Earth


1) In North America, the Carboniferous is subdivided into Mississippian and Pennsylvanian Periods.

2) The Proterozoic, Archean and Hadean are often collectively referred to as Precambrian Time, and sometimes also as the Cryptozoic.

3) Dates are slightly uncertain with differences of a few percent between various sources being common. This is largely due to uncertainties in radiometric dating and the problem that deposits suitable for radiometric dating seldom occur exactly at the places in the geologic column where we would most like to have them. Dates with an * are radiometrically determined based on internationally agreed to GSSPs. The dates quoted above are according to the International Commission on Stratigraphy 2004 time scale. All dates given are for the end of the interval in question.

4) Paleontologists often refer to faunal stages rather than geologic Periods. The Stage Nomenclature is quite complex. See Harland (http://flatpebble.nceas.ucsb.edu/cgi-bin/bridge.pl?action=startScale) for an excellent time ordered list of faunal stages. Also see the article on GSSPs.

5) In common usage the Tertiary-Quaternary and Paleogene-Neogene-Quaternary Periods are treated as equivalents to the Mesozoic and Paleozoic Periods. The term 'Period|Age' (e.g. 'Neogene Period|Age') is sometimes used instead of 'Period'.

6) The time shown in the "Years Ago" column is that of the end of the interval named beside it.

7) Hadean was sometimes called Priscoan.

8) The GSSP for the base of the Ediacaran, ratified in 2004, is a climatic/geochemical marker rather than biostratigraphic. It represents the end of a widespread glaciation event.

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Colors = 

  id:epoch  value:rgb(0.7,0.7,1) # light yellow
  id:period value:rgb(1,0.7,0.7) # light red
  id:age    value:rgb(0.7,1,0.7) # light green
  id:era    value:rgb(1,1,0.7)   # light blue
  id:eon    value:rgb(1,0.7,1)   # light purple
  id:black  value:black

Period = from:-4500 till:0 TimeAxis = orientation:horizontal ScaleMajor = unit:year increment:500 start:-4500 ScaleMinor = unit:year increment:100 start:-4500

Define $markred = text:"*" textcolor:red shift:(0,3) fontsize:10

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  bar:eon color:eon

  at:      0   align:right  $markred
  at:   -545   align:left   $markred
  from: -545   till:    0   text:Phanerozoic
  from:-2500   till: -545   text:Proterozoic
  from:-3800   till: -2500  text:Archaean
  from: start  till: -3800  text:Hadean



  bar:era color:era

  from:  -64.3 till:    0   text:C~z shift:(0,1.5)
  from: -251.1 till:  -64.3 text:Meso~zoic shift:(0,1.5)
  from: -545   till: -251.1 text:Paleo~zoic shift:(0,1.5)
  from: -900   till:  -545  text:Neoprote-~rozoic shift:(0,1.8)
  from:-1600   till:  -900  text:Mesoproterozoic
  from:-2500   till: -1600  text:Paleoproterozoic
  from:-2800   till: -2500  text:Neo-~archean shift:(0,1.5)
  from:-3200   till: -2800  text:Meso-~archean shift:(0,1.5)
  from:-3600   till: -3200  text:Paleo-~archean shift:(0,1.5)
  fontsize:7
  from:-3800   till: -3600  text:Eo-~arch-~ean shift:(0,2)
  from:start   till: -3800  



  bar:period color:period

  fontsize:6
  from:   -1.6 till:    0
  from:  -64.3 till:   -1.6
  from: -146   till:  -64.3
  from: -208   till: -146
  from: -251.1 till: -208
  from: -286   till: -251.1
  from: -360   till: -286
  from: -408.5 till: -360
  from: -443.5 till: -408.5
  from: -490   till: -443.5
  from: -545   till: -490

  from: -620   till:  -545  text:Ed. 
  from: -850   till:  -620  text:Cryo-~genian
  from: -1000  till:  -850  text:Ton-~ian
  from: -1200  till:  -1000 text:Sten-~nian
  from: -1400  till:  -1200 text:Ect-~asian
  from: -1600  till:  -1400 text:Calym-~mian
  from: -1800  till:  -1600 text:Stath-~erian
  from: -2050  till:  -1800 text:Oro-~sirian
  from: -2300  till:  -2050 text:Rhy-~acian
  from: -2500  till:  -2300 text:Sid-~erian
  from: start  till:  -2500

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    id:period value:rgb(1,0.7,0.7) # light red
    id:age    value:rgb(0.7,1,0.7) # light green
    id:era    value:rgb(1,1,0.7)   # light blue
    id:eon    value:rgb(1,0.7,1)   # light purple
    id:filler value:gray(0.8)      # background bar
    id:black  value:black

Period = from:-545 till:0 TimeAxis = orientation:horizontal ScaleMajor = unit:year increment:100 start:-500 ScaleMinor = unit:year increment:10 start:-540

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  bar:eon color:eon
  at:      0   align:right  $markred
  at:   -545   align:left   $markred
  from: -545   till:    0   text:Phanerozoic
  bar:era color:era
  at:      0   align:right  $markgreen
  at:    -64.3 align:left   $markgreen
  from:  -64.3 till:    0   text:Cenozoic
  from: -251.1 till:  -64.3 text:Mesozoic
  from: -545   till: -251.1 text:Paleozoic

  bar:period color:period fontsize:8
  from:   -1.6 till:    0
  from:  -64.3 till:   -1.6 text:Tertiary
  from: -146   till:  -64.3 text:Cretaceous
  from: -208   till: -146   text:Jurassic
  from: -251.1 till: -208   text:Triassic
  from: -286   till: -251.1 text:Permian
  from: -360   till: -286   text:Carboniferous
  from: -408.5 till: -360   text:Devonian
  from: -443.5 till: -408.5 text:Silurian
  from: -490   till: -443.5 text:Ordovician
  from: -545   till: -490   text:Cambrian

  bar:age color:age fontsize:6
  from: start  till:  end
  from: -23    till:  -1.6  text:Neo-~gene             shift:(0,0.5)
  from: -64.3  till: -23    text:Paleo~gene          shift:(0,0.5)
  from: -286   till: -251.1 # mark end of Paleozoic
  from: -325   till:  -286  text:Pennsyl-~vanian shift:(0,0.5)
  from: -360   till:  -325  text:Missis-~sippian shift:(0,0.5)

</timeline>

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  id:age    value:rgb(0.7,1,0.7) # light green
  id:era    value:rgb(1,1,0.7)   # light blue
  id:black  value:black

Period = from:-65.5 till:0 TimeAxis = orientation:horizontal ScaleMajor = unit:year increment:10 start:-60 ScaleMinor = unit:year increment:1 start:-65

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  bar:era color:era
  at:     0  align:right $markgreen
  at: start  align:left  $markgreen
  from:start  till:  0    text:Cenozoic

  bar:period color:period
  from: -1.6  till:  0    text:Qua~ter~nary fontsize:6 align:left shift:(-7,5)
  from:start  till: -1.6  text:Tertiary

  bar:age color:age
  from: -1.6  till:  0
  from: -23   till:  -1.6 text:Neogene
  from:start  till: -23   text:Paleogene

  bar:epoch color:epoch
  from: -0.1  till:  0
  from: -1.6  till: -0.1  text:P
  from: -5    till: -1.6  text:Plio~cene shift:(0,1) fontsize:6
  from:-23    till: -5    text:Miocene
  from:-38    till:-23    text:Oligocene
  from:-55    till:-38    text:Eocene
  from:start  till:-55    text:Paleocene

</timeline>


See also

References


cy:Cyfnodau Daearegol da:Jordens historie de:Geologische Zeitskala et:Geokronoloogiline skaala es:Geología histórica eo:Tera Biografio fr:Échelle des temps géologiques it:Ere geologiche nl:Geologisch tijdvak ja:地質時代 pl:Tabela stratygraficzna sv:Geologisk tidsskala uk:Геохронологічна таблиця zh:地质时代

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