GEOLOGIC

TIME SCALE
Erickson F. Del Mundo, LPT
Shanin F. Lee, LPT
Caloocan City Science High School
FOSSILS: EVIDENCE OF PAST LIFE
The remains
or traces of
organisms
preserved
from the
geologic past.
PRINCIPLE OF FOSSIL SUCCESSION
 Fossilorganisms succeed one
another in a definite and
determinable order, and therefore
any time period can be recognized
by its fossil content.
INDEX FOSSILS
A fossil that is
associated with a
particular span
of geologic time

Paradoxides davidis
Source: The Editors of Encyclopedia Brittanica (2010, November 25). Paradoxides. Retrieved from https://www.britannica.com/animal/Paradoxides
 United States Geological Survey - http://pubs.usgs.gov/gip/geotime/fossils.html
FOSSIL ASSEMBLAGE
 The overlapping ranges of a group of fossils
(assemblage) collected from a layer. By
examining such an assemblage, the age of the
sedimentary layer can be established.
FOSSIL ASSEMBLAGE
THE GEOLOGIC TIME SCALE
 Geologic time - The span of time since
the formation of Earth, about 4.6 billion
years.
 Geologic time scale - The division of
Earth history into blocks of time — eons,
eras, periods, and epochs. The time scale
was created using relative dating principles.
STRUCTURE OF THE GEOLOGIC
TIME SCALE
 Eon - The largest time unit on the geologic time
scale, next in order of magnitude above era.
 Era - A major division on the geologic time scale;
eras are divided into shorter units called periods.
 Period - A basic unit of the geologic time scale that
is a subdivision of an era. Periods may be divided into
smaller units called epochs.
 Epoch - A unit of the geologic time scale that is a
subdivision of a period.
 THE HADEAN EON
 Hadean = hell-like.
 Earth formed 4.57 Ga, based on radiometric analysis of
planetesimal-fragment meteorites.
 Differentiated into core and mantle by 4.5 Ga.
 Much of surface remained a magma ocean until ~ 4.4 Ga.

Fig. 11.1
 THE HADEAN EON
 Collision with a Mars-sized protoplanet ~4.4–4.5 Ga
◦ Ejected large amount of earth’s mantle and crust into
nearby space.
◦ Much of the ejected material caught in orbit and coalesced
quickly to form Earth’s moon.
◦ Moon’s orbit initially much closer than today.

Ch.1 Geology at a Glance

 THE HADEAN EON
 Earth’s Hadean atmosphere was different from ours.
◦ Probably formed by “outgassing” from mantle during
differentiation and subsequent volcanism.
◦ Colliding comets may have contributed some gases.
◦ Humans and most modern life forms could not have survived in
Earth’s early atmosphere.

Fig. 11.1
THE HADEAN EON
 Earth’s Hadean atmosphere was different from
ours.
◦ Early atmosphere was denser than ours.
◦ Contained water vapor (H2O), nitrogen (N2),
methane (CH4), ammonia (NH3), hydrogen (H2),
carbon dioxide (CO2), and sulfur dioxide (SO2).
THE ARCHEAN EON
 Archean = beginning
 From 3.85 to 2.5 Ga
 Based on first abundance of crustal rocks (3.85 Ga)
 Plate tectonics began during or just before the
Archean.
 THE ARCHEAN EON
 Early plate tectonics—unsure of model
◦ Early crust was probably made up of mafic igneous rocks
formed as island-arcs and hot-spot volcanoes.
◦ Partial melting of basaltic crust created felsic rocks.
◦ Small blocks of buoyant crust were created.
◦ Rifting led to flood basalts.
◦ Erosion produced sediment.

Fig. 11.2a
 THE ARCHEAN EON
 Protocontinents were formed by collisions of buoyant blocks.
Volcanic arcs, hot spots, and sedimentary debris were sutured
together as the first continents.
End of Archean, continental crust reached ~ 85% of present area.

Fig. 11.2b, c
THE ARCHEAN EON
 First Life
◦ Around 3.2 Ga—oldest undisputed fossils
◦ Shapes in rocks indicate organisms as old as 3.4–3.5 Ga
◦ Possibly as old as 3.8 Ga, possibly even older
◦ Photosynthesis occurring by late Archean
 Origins remain uncertain.
Probably from deep, dark
submarine hot-water vents
—“black smokers”
Thermophilic (heat-loving)
bacteria or archaea existed
in extreme conditions.
Fig. 11.3a
 THE ARCHEAN EON
 Archean strata contain stromatolites:
◦ First large fossil structures – layered mounds of
sediment
◦ Still exist, growing today near Australia
◦ Alternating layers of cyanobacteria and sediment
settling from water
◦ First appear ~ 3.5 Ga

Fig. 11.3b
 THE PROTEROZOIC EON
 Proterozoic = early life
 Around 2.5 Ga to 542 Ma
 Several rounds of super-continent assembly and
rifting
 90% of continental crust formed by middle
Proterozoic

Fig. 11.4
 THE PROTEROZOIC EON
 Atmospheric oxygen rose dramatically after the
appearance of photosynthetic organisms ~ 2.4
Ga.
Great Oxygenation Event
2.4–1.8 Ga: Banded Iron Formations (BIF)

Chapter 11 opener
 THE PROTEROZOIC EON
 Life forms evolved slowly.
◦ Eukaryotes (bacteria with nuclei) evolved ~2.7–2.1 Ga.
◦ Multicellular life forms appeared by 750 Ma.
◦ Large life forms leaving obviously recognizable fossils
evolved ~620 Ma.
◦ Ediacaran fauna appeared
in the late Proterozoic.
Complex, soft-bodied forms
Resembled jellyfish, worms

Fig. 11.7a
 THE PROTEROZOIC SNOWBALL
EARTH
 Major climate shifts in late Proterozoic
 Glaciers covered continents, ocean surface frozen.
 Many life forms probably became extinct as ocean
chemistry and photochemistry changed due to ice cover.
 CO2 from volcanism warmed Earth, ended major ice age.

Fig. 11.7b, c
 THE PHANEROZOIC EON
 Phanerozoic = visible life
 From 542 Ma to present
 Defined by widespread, diverse life forms
Carbonate shells, skeletal material enhance
preservation
 Divided into three eras:
◦ The Paleozoic Era: 542–252 Ma
◦ The Mesozoic Era: 251–65 Ma
◦ The Cenozoic Era: 65 Ma to present
Interlude E opener
PALEOZOIC ERA: LIFE EXPLODES

 Following the long Precambrian, the most recent

540 million years of Earth’s history are divided into
three eras: Paleozoic, Mesozoic, and Cenozoic.
PALEOZOIC ERA: LIFE EXPLODES
Early Paleozoic History
• During the Cambrian, Ordovician, and
Silurian periods, the vast southern
continent of Gondwana encompassed five
continents (South America, Africa,
Australia, Antarctica, and part of Asia).
 Gondwana and the
Continental Landmasses
PALEOZOIC ERA: LIFE EXPLODES

 Early Paleozoic Life

• Life in early Paleozoic time was
restricted to the seas.
LIFE IN THE ORDOVICIAN PERIOD
PALEOZOIC ERA: LIFE EXPLODES
 Late Paleozoic History
• Laurasia is the continental mass that formed the
northern portion of Pangaea, consisting of
present-day North America and Eurasia.
• By the end of the Paleozoic, all the continents
had fused into the supercontinent of Pangaea.
Late Paleozoic Plate Movements
PALEOZOIC ERA: LIFE EXPLODES
 Late Paleozoic Life

• Some 400 million years ago, plants that had

adapted to survive at the water’s edge began
to move inland, becoming land plants.
• The amphibians rapidly diversified because
they had minimal competition from other land
dwellers.
Armor-Plated Fish
Model of a Pennsylvanian
Coal Swamp
PALEOZOIC ERA: LIFE EXPLODES
 The world’s climate became very seasonal,
probably causing the dramatic extinction of many
species.
 The late Paleozoic extinction was the greatest of
at least five mass extinctions to occur over the
past 500 million years.
Mesozoic Era: Age of Reptiles
 Dinosaurs were land-dwelling reptiles that thrived
during the Mesozoic era.
 Mesozoic History
• A major event of the Mesozoic era was the breakup of Pangaea.
13.3 Mesozoic Era: Age of Reptiles
 Mesozoic Life
• Gymnosperms are seed-bearing plants that do
not depend on free-standing water for
fertilization.
• The gymnosperms quickly became the dominant
plants of the Mesozoic era.
MESOZOIC ERA: AGE OF REPTILES
The Shelled Egg
• Unlike amphibians, reptiles have shell-covered
eggs that can be laid on the land.
• The elimination of a water-dwelling stage (like
the tadpole stage in frogs) was an important
evolutionary step.
Mesozoic Era: Age of Reptiles
 Reptiles Dominate
• With the perfection of the shelled egg,
reptiles quickly became the dominant land
animals.
• At the end of the Mesozoic era, many
reptile groups became extinct.
The Flying Reptile Pteranodon
Fossil Skull of an Extinct Crocodile
CENOZOIC ERA: AGE OF MAMMALS
 The Cenozoic era is divided into two periods of
very unequal duration, the Tertiary period and the
Quaternary period.
 Plate interactions during the Cenozoic era caused
many events of mountain building, volcanism, and
earthquakes in the West.
CENOZOIC ERA: AGE OF MAMMALS
 Mammals—animals that bear live young and
maintain a steady body temperature— replaced
reptiles as the dominant land animals in the
Cenozoic era.
 Angiosperms—flowering plants with covered
seeds—replaced gymnosperms as the dominant
land plants.
CENOZOIC ERA: AGE OF MAMMALS
 Mammals Replace Reptiles
• Adaptations like being warm blooded,
developing insulating body hair, and
having more efficient heart and lungs allow
mammals to lead more active lives than
reptiles.
Fossils from La Brea Tar Pits
CENOZOIC ERA: AGE OF MAMMALS
 Large Mammals and Extinction
• In North America, the mastodon and mammoth,
both huge relatives of the elephant, became
extinct. In addition, saber-toothed cats, giant
beavers, large ground sloths, horses, camels,
giant bison, and others died out on the North
American continent.
• The reason for this recent wave of extinctions
puzzles scientists.
REFERENCES
 Marshak, Stephen(2013) Essentials of Geology
4th edition
 Tarbuck, E. J. et al (2014) Earth An Introduction to
Physical Geology,