Creation of Earth

By Joseph0430
  • Period: 46,000 BCE to 45,400 BCE

    Planetary Accretion

    As the condensed mass of gas grows, it attracts more and more matter until the hot condensed matter forms a planet.
  • 45,400 BCE

    Earth formed

    Earth actually formed 4.54 billion years ago. *Note that it's 1= 1million scale
  • 45,000 BCE

    The Moon formed

    As an asteroid crashed into earth, a shard of still molten earth got carried out and cooled, forming the moon.
  • 44,000 BCE

    Oldest known gemstone

    Oldest known gemstone (Zircon) , which is 4.4 billion years old, has been identified in Australia. Oskin, Becky. “Confirmed: Oldest Fragment of Early Earth Is 4.4 Billion Years Old.” LiveScience, Purch, 23 Feb. 2014, www.livescience.com/43584-earth-oldest-rock-jack-hills-zircon.html.
  • Period: 39,000 BCE to 38,000 BCE

    The Late Heavy Bombardment

    The Young Earth is bombarded with asteroids and failed stars.
  • 38,000 BCE

    Replicating molecules form

    Replicating molecules (the precursors of DNA) form.
  • 38,000 BCE

    Bombardments stop

    The asteroids bump into Earth significantly less now.
  • 35,000 BCE

    Unicellular life evolves

    Unicellular life evolves. Photosynthetic bacteria begin to release oxygen into the atmosphere.
  • Period: 4600 BCE to 514 BCE

    Precambrian (Supereon)

    The Precambrian is the earliest part of Earth's history, set before the current Phanerozoic Eon. The Precambrian is so named because it preceded the Cambrian, the first period of the Phanerozoic eon, which is named after Cambria, the Latinised name for Wales, where rocks from this age were first studied.
  • Period: 4500 BCE to 4000 BCE

    Hadean (Eon)

    The very first Eon, The Earth is formed out of debris around the solar protoplanetary disk. There is no life. Temperatures are extremely hot, with frequent volcanic activity and hellish environments. The atmosphere is nebular. Possible early oceans or bodies of liquid water. The moon is formed around this time, probably due to a protoplanet's collision into Earth.
  • Period: 4000 BCE to 2500 BCE

    Archean (Eon)

    Prokaryote life, the first form of life, emerges at the very beginning of this eon, in a process known as abiogenesis. The continents of Ur, Vaalbara and Kenorland may have been formed around this time. The atmosphere is composed of volcanic and greenhouse gases.
  • Period: 4000 BCE to 3600 BCE

    Eoarchean (Era)

    The Eoarchean is the first era of the Archean Eon of the geologic record for which the Earth has a solid crust. It spans 400 million years from the end of the Hadean Eon 4 billion years ago to the start of the Paleoarchean Era 3600 Mya.
  • Period: 3600 BCE to 3200 BCE

    Paleoarchean (Era)

    The Paleoarchean, is a geologic era within the Archaean Eon. It spans the period of time 3,600 to 3,200 million years ago—the era is defined chronometrically and is not referenced to a specific level of a rock section on Earth. The name derives from Greek "Palaios" ancient.
  • Period: 3200 BCE to 2800 BCE

    Mesoarchean (Era)

    The Mesoarchean is a geologic era within the Archean Eon, spanning 3,200 to 2,800 million years ago. The era is defined chronometrically and is not referenced to a specific level in a rock section on Earth. Fossils from Australia show that stromatolites have lived on Earth since the Mesoarchean.
  • Period: 2800 BCE to 2500 BCE

    Neoarchean (Era)

    The Neoarchean is a geologic era within the Archaean Eon. The Neoarchean spans the period from 2,800 to 2,500 million years ago—the period being defined chronometrically and not referenced to a specific level in a rock section on Earth.
  • Period: 2500 BCE to 541 BCE

    Proterozoic (Eon)

    Eukaryotes, a more complex form of life, emerge, including some forms of multicellular organisms. Bacteria begin producing oxygen, shaping the third and current of Earth's atmospheres. Plants, later animals and possibly earlier forms of fungi form around this time. The early and late phases of this eon may have undergone "Snowball Earth" periods, in which all of the planet suffered below-zero temperatures.
  • Period: 2500 BCE to 2600 BCE

    Paleoproterozoic (Era)

    Paleoproterozoic Era, spanning the time period from 2,500 to 1,600 million years ago, is the first of the three sub-divisions of the Proterozoic Eon. The Paleoproterozoic is also the longest era of the Earth's geological history. It was during this era that the continents first stabilized.
  • Period: 2500 BCE to 2300 BCE

    Siderian (Period)

    The Siderian Period is the first geologic period in the Paleoproterozoic Era and lasted from 2500 Mya to 2300 Mya. Instead of being based on stratigraphy, these dates are defined chronometrically. The laying down of the banded iron formations peaked early in this period.
  • Period: 2300 BCE to 2050 BCE

    Rhyacian (Period)

    The Rhyacian Period is the second geologic period in the Paleoproterozoic Era and lasted from 2300 Mya to 2050 Mya. Instead of being based on stratigraphy, these dates are defined chronometrically. The Bushveld Igneous Complex and other similar intrusions formed during this period.
  • Period: 2050 BCE to 1800 BCE

    Orosirian (Period)

    The Orosirian Period is the third geologic period in the Paleoproterozoic Era and lasted from 2050 Mya to 1800 Mya. Instead of being based on stratigraphy, these dates are defined chronometrically. The later half of the period was an episode of intensive orogeny on virtually all continents.
  • Period: 1800 BCE to 1600 BCE

    Statherian (Period)

    The Statherian Period is the final geologic period in the Paleoproterozoic Era and lasted from 1800 Mya to 1600 Mya. Instead of being based on stratigraphy, these dates are defined chronometrically. The period was characterized on most continents by either new platforms or final cratonization of fold belts.
  • Period: 1600 BCE to 1000 BCE

    Mesoproterozoic (Era)

    The Mesoproterozoic Era is a geologic era that occurred from 1,600 to 1,000 million years ago. The Mesoproterozoic was the first period of Earth's history of which a fairly definitive geological record survives. Continents existed during the preceding era, but little is known about them.
  • Period: 1600 BCE to 1400 BCE

    Calymmian (Period)

    The Calymmian Period is the first geologic period in the Mesoproterozoic Era and lasted from 1600 Mya to 1400 Mya. Instead of being based on stratigraphy, these dates are defined chronometrically.
  • Period: 1400 BCE to 1200 BCE

    Ectasian (Period)

    The Ectasian Period is the second geologic period in the Mesoproterozoic Era and lasted from 1400 Mya ago to 1200 Mya. Instead of being based on stratigraphy, these dates are defined chronometrically. Geologically the name refers to the continued expansion of platform covers during this period.
  • Period: 1200 BCE to 1000 BCE

    Stenian (Period)

    The Stenian Period is the final geologic period in the Mesoproterozoic Era and lasted from 1200 Mya to 1000 Mya. Instead of being based on stratigraphy, these dates are defined chronometrically. The name derives from narrow polymetamorphic belts formed over this period.
  • Period: 1000 BCE to 541 BCE

    Neoproterozoic (Era)

    The Neoproterozoic Era is the unit of geologic time from 1,000 to 541 million years ago. It is the last era of the Precambrian Supereon and the Proterozoic Eon; it is subdivided into the Tonian, Cryogenian, and Ediacaran Periods. It is preceded by the Mesoproterozoic era and succeeded by the Paleozoic era.
  • Period: 1000 BCE to 720 BCE

    Tonian (Period)

    The Tonian is the first geologic period of the Neoproterozoic Era. It lasted from 1000 Mya to 720 Mya. Instead of being based on stratigraphy, these dates are defined by the ICS based on radiometric chronometry. The Tonian is preceded by the Stenian Period of the Mesoproterozoic era and followed by the Cryogenian.
  • Period: 720 BCE to 635 BCE

    Cryogenian (Period)

    The Cryogenian is a geologic period that lasted from 720 to 635 million years ago. It forms the second geologic period of the Neoproterozoic Era, preceded by the Tonian Period and followed by the Ediacaran.
  • Period: 635 BCE to 541 BCE

    Ediacaran (Period)

    The Ediacaran Period, spans 94 million years from the end of the Cryogenian Period 635 million years ago, to the beginning of the Cambrian Period 541 Mya. It marks the end of the Proterozoic Eon, and the beginning of the Phanerozoic Eon. It is named after the Ediacara Hills of South Australia.
  • 555 BCE

    Multi-cellular organisms are common

    Multi-cellular marine organisms are common. The diverse assortment of life includes bizarre-looking animals like Wiwaxia.
  • Period: 541 BCE to 1 CE

    Phanerozoic (Eon)

    Complex life, like vertebrates, begin to dominate the Earth's ocean in a process known as the Cambrian explosion. Pangaea forms and later dissolves into Laurasia and Gondwana. Gradually, life expands to land and all familiar forms of plants, animals and fungi begin appearing, including annelids, insects and reptiles. Several mass extinctions occur, among which birds, the descendants of dinosaurs, and more recently mammals emerge.
  • Period: 541 BCE to 251 BCE

    Paleozoic (Era)

    The Paleozoic Era is the earliest of three geologic eras of the Phanerozoic Eon. It is the longest of the Phanerozoic eras, lasting from 541 to 251.902 million years ago, and is subdivided into six geologic periods: the Cambrian, Ordovician, Silurian, Devonian, Carboniferous, and Permian.
  • Period: 541 BCE to 485 BCE

    Cambrian (Period)

    The Cambrian Period was the first geological period of the Paleozoic Era, and of the Phanerozoic Eon. The Cambrian lasted 55.6 million years from the end of the preceding Ediacaran Period 541 million years ago to the beginning of the Ordovician Period 485.4 mya. Its subdivisions, and its base, are somewhat in flux
  • 500 BCE

    Fish-like vertebrates evolve

    Fish-like vertebrates evolve. Invertebrates, such as trilobites, crinoids, brachiopids, and cephalopods, are common in the oceans.
  • Period: 485 BCE to 443 BCE

    Ordovician (Period)

    The Ordovician is a geologic period and system, the second of six periods of the Paleozoic Era. The Ordovician spans 41.2 million years from the end of the Cambrian Period 485.4 million years ago to the start of the Silurian Period 443.8 Mya.
  • 450 BCE

    Arthropods move onto land

    Arthropods move onto the land. Their descendants evolve into scorpions, spiders, mites, and millipedes.
  • Period: 443 BCE to 419 BCE

    Silurian (Period)

    The Silurian is a geologic period and system spanning 24.6 million years from the end of the Ordovician Period, at 443.8 million years ago, to the beginning of the Devonian Period, 419.2 Mya.
  • 420 BCE

    Land plants evolve

    Land plants evolve, drastically changing Earth's landscape and creating new habitats.
  • Period: 419 BCE to 358 BCE

    Devonian (Period)

    The Devonian is a geologic period and system of the Paleozoic, spanning 60 million years from the end of the Silurian, 419.2 million years ago, to the beginning of the Carboniferous, 358.9 Mya. It is named after Devon, England, where rocks from this period were first studied.
  • 360 BCE

    Four-limbed vertebrates move onto land

    Four-limbed vertebrates move onto the land as seed plants and large forests appear. The Earth's oceans support vast reef systems.
  • Period: 358 BCE to 298 BCE

    Carboniferous (Period)

    The Carboniferous is a geologic period and system that spans 60 million years from the end of the Devonian Period 358.9 million years ago, to the beginning of the Permian Period, 298.9 Mya.
  • Period: 298 BCE to 251 BCE

    Permian (Period)

    The Permian is a geologic period and system which spans 47 million years from the end of the Carboniferous Period 298.9 million years ago, to the beginning of the Triassic period 251.902 Mya. It is the last period of the Paleozoic era; the following Triassic period belongs to the Mesozoic era.
  • Period: 251 BCE to 66 BCE

    Mesozoic (Era)

    The Mesozoic Era is an interval of geological time from about 252 to 66 million years ago. It is also called the Age of Reptiles, a phrase introduced by the 19th century paleontologist Gideon Mantell who viewed it as dominated by diapsids such as Iguanodon, Megalosaurus, Plesiosaurus and Pterodactylus.
  • Period: 251 BCE to 201 BCE

    Triassic (Period)

    The Triassic is a geologic period and system which spans 50.6 million years from the end of the Permian Period 251.9 million years ago, to the beginning of the Jurassic Period 201.3 Mya. The Triassic is the first period of the Mesozoic Era. Both the start and end of the period are marked by major extinction events.
  • 250 BCE

    Pangea forms

    The supercontinent called Pangea forms. Conifer-like forests, reptiles, and synapsids (the ancestors of mammals) are common.
  • 248 BCE

    Greatest mass extinction

    Over 90% of marine life and 70% of terrestrial life go extinct during the Earth's largest mass extinction. Ammonites are among the survivors.
  • 225 BCE

    Dinosaurs and mammals evolve

    Dinosaurs and mammals evolve. Pangea has begun to break apart.
  • Period: 201 BCE to 145 BCE

    Jurassic (Period)

    The Jurassic was a geologic period and system that spanned 56 million years from the end of the Triassic Period 201.3 million years ago to the beginning of the Cretaceous Period 145 Mya. The Jurassic constitutes the middle period of the Mesozoic Era, also known as the Age of Reptiles.
  • 175 BCE

    The Pangea starts breaking up

  • Period: 145 BCE to 66 BCE

    Cretaceous (Period)

    The Cretaceous is a geologic period and system that spans 79 million years from the end of the Jurassic Period 145 million years ago to the beginning of the Paleogene Period 66 mya. It is the last period of the Mesozoic Era, and the longest period of the Phanerozoic Eon.
  • 130 BCE

    Flowers evolve

    As the continents drift toward their present positions, the earliest flowers evolve, and dinosaurs dominate the landscape. In the sea, bony fish diversify.
  • Period: 66 BCE to 56 BCE

    Paleocene (Epoch)

    The Paleocene or Palaeocene, the "old recent", is a geological epoch that lasted from about 66 to 56 million years ago. It is the first epoch of the Paleogene Period in the modern Cenozoic Era.
  • Period: 66 BCE to 1 CE

    Cenozoic (Era)

    The Cenozoic Era meaning "new life", is the current and most recent of the three Phanerozoic geological eras, following the Mesozoic Era and extending from 66 million years ago to the present day.
  • Period: 66 BCE to 23 BCE

    Paleogene (Period)

    The Paleogene is a geologic period and system that spans 43 million years from the end of the Cretaceous Period 66 million years ago to the beginning of the Neogene Period 23.03 Mya. It is the beginning of the Cenozoic Era of the present Phanerozoic Eon.
  • 65 BCE

    Meteor strike occurs

    A massive asteroid hits the Yucatan Peninsula, and ammonites and non-avian dinosaurs go extinct. Birds and mammals are among the survivors.
  • Period: 56 BCE to 33 BCE

    Eocene (Epoch)

    The Eocene Epoch, lasting from 56 to 33.9 million years ago, is a major division of the geologic timescale and the second epoch of the Paleogene Period in the Cenozoic Era. The Eocene spans the time from the end of the Paleocene Epoch to the beginning of the Oligocene Epoch.
  • Period: 33 BCE to 23 BCE

    Oligocene (Epoch)

    The Oligocene is a geologic epoch of the Paleogene Period and extends from about 33.9 million to 23 million years before the present. As with other older geologic periods, the rock beds that define the epoch are well identified but the exact dates of the start and end of the epoch are slightly uncertain.
  • Period: 23 BCE to 2 BCE

    Neogene (Period)

    The Neogene is a geologic period and system that spans 20.45 million years from the end of the Paleogene Period 23.03 million years ago to the beginning of the present Quaternary Period 2.58 Mya. The Neogene is sub-divided into two epochs, the earlier Miocene and the later Pliocene.
  • Period: 23 BCE to 5 BCE

    Miocene (Epoch)

    The Miocene is the first geological epoch of the Neogene Period and extends from about 23.03 to 5.333 million years ago. The Miocene was named by Charles Lyell; its name comes from the Greek words μείων and καινός and means "less recent" because it has 18% fewer modern sea invertebrates than the Pliocene.
  • 4 BCE

    Hominids evolve

    In Africa, an early hominid, affectionately named "Lucy" by scientists, lives. The ice ages begin, and many large mammals go extinct.
  • Period: 2 BCE to 1 CE

    Quaternary (Period)

    Quaternary is the current and most recent of the three periods of the Cenozoic Era in the geologic time scale of the International Commission on Stratigraphy. It follows the Neogene Period and spans from 2.588 ± 0.005 million years ago to the present.
  • Period: 2 BCE to 1 BCE

    Pleistocene

    The Pleistocene is the geological epoch which lasted from about 2,588,000 to 11,700 years ago, spanning the world's most recent period of repeated glaciations. The end of the Pleistocene corresponds with the end of the last glacial period and also with the end of the Paleolithic age used in archaeology.