Appendix:Geologic timescale
Definition from Wiktionary, the free dictionary
The eons, eras, periods and epochs of geologic time - most recent first - numbers are millions of years ago and mark the end of the timeframe
Contents |
Phanerozoic eon [edit]
Cenozoic era [edit]
Neogene period [edit]
Holocene epoch [edit]
- 0 - end of most recent glaciation; start of civilization
Pleistocene epoch [edit]
Pliocene epoch [edit]
- 1.8 - ice age, modern mammals and molluscs appear
Miocene epoch [edit]
Paleogene period [edit]
Oligocene epoch [edit]
- 23 - warm climate, rapid evolution,
Eocene epoch [edit]
- 34 - archaic mammals, start of current ice age
Paleocene epoch [edit]
- 56 - tropical climate, first large mammals
Mesozoic era [edit]
Cretaceous period [edit]
Upper epoch [edit]
- 65 - flowering plants, fish, dinosaurs
Lower epoch [edit]
- 100 - break up of Gondwanaland
Jurassic period [edit]
Upper epoch [edit]
- 145 - ferns
Middle epoch [edit]
- 161 - lizards
Lower epoch [edit]
- 175 - ammonites
Triassic period [edit]
Upper epoch [edit]
- 200 -- archosaurs
Middle epoch [edit]
- 230 - amphibians
Lower epoch [edit]
- 245 - first small mammals
Paleozoic era [edit]
Permian period [edit]
Lopingian epoch [edit]
- 251 - supercontinent of Pangea
Guadalupian epoch [edit]
- 260 - gymnosperms
Cisuralian epoch [edit]
Carboniferous period [edit]
Upper Pennsylvanian epoch [edit]
- 299 - winged insects
Middle Pennsylvanian epoch [edit]
- 306 - reptiles, coal forests
Lower Pennsylvanian epoch [edit]
- 312 - high oxygen content atmosphere
Upper Mississippian epoch [edit]
- 318 - primitive trees
Middle Mississippian epoch [edit]
- 326 - primitive sharks
Lower Mississippian epoch [edit]
- 345 - glaciation
Devonian period [edit]
Upper epoch [edit]
- 359 - clubmosses
Middle epoch [edit]
- 385 - crinoids
Lower epoch [edit]
- 398 - jawed fish
Silurian period [edit]
Pridoli epoch [edit]
- 416 - first vascular land plants
Ludlow epoch [edit]
- 419 - millipedes
Wenlock epoch [edit]
- 423 - corals
Llandovery epoch [edit]
- 428 - trilobites
Ordovician period [edit]
Upper epoch [edit]
- 443 - invertebrates dominant
Middle epoch [edit]
- 461 - starfish
Lower epoch [edit]
- 471 - first land plants
Cambrian period [edit]
Furongian epoch [edit]
- 488 - Cambrian explosion of life
Middle epoch [edit]
- 501 - Trilobites
Lower epoch [edit]
- 513 - sponges
Proterozoic eon [edit]
Neoproterozoic era [edit]
Ediacaran period [edit]
- 542 - first multi-celled animals
Cryogenian period [edit]
- 630 - snowball earth
Tonian period [edit]
- 850 - acritarch radiation
Mesoproterozoic era [edit]
Stennian period [edit]
- 1000 - formation of Rodinia
Ectasian period [edit]
- 1200
Calymmian period [edit]
- 1400
Paleoproterozoic era [edit]
Statherian period [edit]
- 1600 - first complex single-celled life
Orosirian period [edit]
- 1800 - transition to oxygen atmosphere
Rhyacian period [edit]
- 2050
Siderian period [edit]
- 2300
Archaean eon [edit]
Neoarchean era [edit]
- 2,500 - stabilization of most modern cratons
Mesoarchean era [edit]
- 2,800 - first stromatolites
Paleoarchean era [edit]
Eoarchean era [edit]
- 3,600 - first single-celled organisms
Hadean eon [edit]
- 3,800 to 4,100 - oldest known rock
- 4,400 - oldest known mineral
- 4,570 - Earth formed
