GEOLOGICAL
TIME SCALE;
Come with me in a tour back to our History!!!
Geologic Time Scale
Is a record or timeline of the life forms and
geologic events in Earth’s History
Scientists placed rocks in order to its relative age to create the
column.
The scale was developed by studying these rock layers and index
fossils.
Radioactive dating helped us determine the absolute date of the
divisions in the scale.
Geologic Time Scale
01
EONS
Largest division of Geologic Time
There are four Eons in the scale.
HADEAN EON
There were rocks fall from
meterites and moon.
ARCHEAN EON
Earliest rocks on Earth were
formed.
PROTEROZOIC EON
• No life possible as the Earth
initially forms 4.6 billion yrs.
ago.
• Simple, single-celled forms of
life appear 3.8 billion yrs. ago.
• Land masses gather to make up a
continent called “Rodinia”
PHANEROZOIC EON
This means “Visible Life”
which are well represented in
the fossil records.
541 MYA - Today
Precambrian
(Hadean, Archean, and Proterozoic Age)
Earth takes 10my. cools
down.
H and He escapes into space.
Earth’s core formation (Ni &
Fe)
02
ERAS
2nd Largest division of Geologic Time
Includes 2 or more Periods
PALEOZOIC ERA
“AGE OF INVERTEBRATES”
• “Early Life”
• 544 – 244 mya
• Divided into 7 periods
MESOZOIC ERA
“AGE OF REPTILES”
• “Middle Life”
• 245 – 66 mya
• Divided into 3 periods
CENOZOIC ERA
“AGE OF MAMMALS”
• “Recent Life”
• 66 mya – present
• Divided into 2 periods
03
PERIODS
3rd Largest unit into which eras are divided.
Cambrian
• Explosion of Life
• All existing phyla come into a
being at this time.
• Life forms in warm seas as
oxygen level rise enough to
support life.
• Dominant Animals: Marine
invertebrates
• Supercontinent Gondwana forms
near the south pole.
Ordovician
• The 1st animals with
bones appear, though
dominant animals are
still trilobites,
brachiopods and corals.
• Four main continents:
Gondwana, Baltica,
Siberia and Laurentia.
Silurian
• First land plants appear
and land animals follow
• Laurentia collides with
Baltica and closes
Iapetus Sea.
• Extensive Erosion
Devonian
• Age of Fish
• Pre-Pangaea forms.
• Present-day Arctic Canada
was at the equator and
hardwoods began to grow.
• Amphibians, evergreens and
ferns appear
Mississippian
• First seed plants appear
• Sea life flourishes including
corals, brachiopods,
blastoids, and bryozon.
• Much of America is under
water.
Pennsylvanian
• Reptiles develop from
amphibians
• Flying insects appear
• Great swamps develop
Permian
• Pangaea forms.
• Reptiles spread across
continents.
• 90% of Earth’s species
become extinct due to
volcanism in Siberia.
• The Appalachians rise
Triassic
• First dinosaurs appear
• First mammals- small
rodents
• Appear
• First turtle fossil from
this period.
• Pangaea breaks apart
• Rocky Mountains
form.
Jurassic
• Dinosaurs flourish
“Golden age of
dinosaurs”
• First birds appear
• Pangaea still breaking
apart
• North America continues
to rotate away from
Africa
Cretaceous
• First snakes and
primates appear
• Mass extinction
• First flowering plants
• Deciduous trees and
grasses common
Tertiary
• First horses appear and
tropical plants dominate
(Paleocene)
• Grasses spread and
whales, rhinos,
elephants and other
large mammals develop
• Dogs, cats, and apes
appear (Oligocene)
Quaternary
• Modern humans develop
and ice sheets are
predominant- Ice age
(Pleistocene)
• Holocene Humans
flourish (Holocene)
04
EPOCHS
4th Largest unit
The subdivision of a period
Paleocene
• First Horses appear.
• Tropical plants dominate
Eocene
• Grasses spreads widely
• Whales, rhinos, elephants and other large
mammals develop
Oligocene
• Dogs, cats, and apes appear
• Appalachians uplift, erosion increase
Miocene
• Sand hills were formed.
• Horses, mastodons, mammoths, tigers and
camels lives on South Carolina
Pliocene
• Hominids develop.
• Volcanic activity in North America and
Africa
Pleistocene
• Ice sheets forms
• Modern human develop, Asians arrive and
settle the Americas.
Holocene
• Beaches and barrier islands forms
• Mastodon becomes extinct
• Human culture flourishes.
EON > ERA > PERIOD > EPOCH
We are living in the Phanerozoic Eon,
Cenozoic Era, Quaternary Period,
Holocene Epoch…
Mass Extinction
Occurs when many living things go extinct at the same time (Impacts plants
and animals on land and in sea)
Only happened twice in Earth’s history.
1st: Between Paleozoic and Mesozoic Eras
Trilobites suddenly went extinct. Think climate change from continental drift may have caused
extinction. Formation of Pangaea caused deserts to expand in tropics. Sheets of ice covered land closer to
South Pole. Organisms could not survive.
2nd: Between Mesozoic and Cenozoic Eras
Wiped out over half of all plant and animal groups on Earth. No dinosaurs survived
Two Theories of
Asteroid hit earth.
Impact threw huge amounts of dust and water into atmosphere
blocking sunlight. No sun = plants died and plant eating animals
starved. Clouds also caused temperatures to drop.
Climate changes
were caused by increased volcanic activity. Volcanic output would
block sun as well and same process would follow.
