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These units are arranged in a hierarchy: eon, era, period, epoch, subepoch, age, and subage. [14] Geochronology is the scientific branch of geology that aims to determine the age of rocks, fossils, and sediments either through absolute (e.g., radiometric dating) or relative means (e.g., stratigraphic position, paleomagnetism, stable isotope ...
13 wrz 2024 · The geologic time scale is the “calendar” for events in Earth history. It subdivides all time into named units of abstract time called—in descending order of duration— eons, eras, periods, epochs, and ages.
28 lut 2020 · This process, performed by algae and other microorganisms, caused oxygen molecules in water to be released into the atmosphere. Prior to oxygenic photosynthesis, Earth's atmosphere had no free oxygen, a huge impediment to the evolution of life.
The principal chart shows the Phanerozoic (Cambrian to Quaternary) timescale. The names of the individual periods are links: each one leads to a more detailed chart showing the epochs and ages for that period. The charts for the individual periods are all drawn to the same scale.
The names of the eras in the Phanerozoic eon (the eon of visible life) are the Cenozoic ("recent life"), Mesozoic ("middle life") and Paleozoic ("ancient life"). The further subdivision of the eras into 12 "periods" is based on identifiable but less profound changes in life-forms.
Figure 12.1 shows you what the geologic time scale looks like. We now live in the Phanerozoic eon, the Cenozoic era, and the Quarternary period. Sometimes, periods are further divided into epochs, but they are usually just named “early” or “late”, for example, “late Jurassic”, or “early Cretaceous”.
Eras. Eons of geological time are subdivided into eras, which are the second-longest units of geological time. The Phanerozoic eon is divided into three eras: the Paleozoic, Mesozoic, and Cenozoic.
