Geologic Time Scale With Links To Paleomaps
|
| EON |
ERA
| PERIOD |
EPOCH |
DATES* |
AGE of |
Events |
Phanerozoic |
Cenozoic |
Quaternary |
Holocene |
0-2 |
Mammals |
Humans
|
Pleistocene
|
|
Tertiary |
Neogene |
Pliocene |
2-5
|
|
Miocene |
5-24
|
|
Paleogene |
Oligocene |
24-37
|
|
Eocene |
37-58
|
|
Paleocene |
58-66 |
Extinction of dinosaurs
|
|
Mesozoic |
Cretaceous |
66-144 |
Reptiles |
Flowering plants
|
|
Jurassic |
144-208 |
1st birds/mammals
|
|
Triassic |
208-245 |
First Dinosaurs
|
|
Paleozoic |
Permian |
245-286 |
Amphibians |
End of trilobites
|
|
Carboniferous |
Pennsylvanian |
286-320 |
First reptiles
|
|
Mississippian |
320-360 |
Large primitive trees
|
|
Devonian |
360-408 |
Fishes |
First amphibians
|
|
Silurian |
408-438 |
First land plant fossils
|
|
Ordovician |
438-505 |
Invertebrates |
First Fish
|
|
Cambrian |
505-570 |
1st shells, trilobites dominant
|
| Proterozoic |
Also known as Precambrian |
570-2,500 |
1st Multicelled organisms
|
| Archean |
2,500-3,800 |
1st one-celled organisms
|
| Hadean |
3,800-4,600 |
Approx age of oldest rocks 3,800
|
* Note: Dates are in millions of years
Taken from: MODERN PHYSICAL GEOLOGY, Graham R. Thompson Ph.D., Jonathan Turk Ph.D., Saunders College Publishing.
Links lead to period paleomaps created by Chrisopher R. Scotese for the
Paleomap Project.
The project illustrates the plate tectonic development of the ocean basins
and continents, as well as the changing distribution of land and sea
during the past 1100 million years. All links open into a new window.
|
