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The timeline of the evolutionary history of life represents the current scientific theory outlining the major events during the development of life on planet Earth. Dates in this article are consensus estimates based on scientific evidence, mainly fossils . In biology, evolution is any change across successive generations in the heritable ...
The history of life on Earth traces the processes by which living and fossil organisms evolved, from the earliest emergence of life to present day. Earth formed about 4.5 billion years ago (abbreviated as Ga, for gigaannum) and evidence suggests that life emerged prior to 3.7 Ga. [1] [2] [3] The similarities among all known present-day species ...
The geological history of the Earth follows the major geological events in Earth's past based on the geological time scale, a system of chronological measurement based on the study of the planet's rock layers ( stratigraphy ). Earth formed about 4.54 billion years ago by accretion from the solar nebula, a disk-shaped mass of dust and gas left ...
The history of Earth is divided into four great eons, starting 4,540 mya with the formation of the planet. Each eon saw the most significant changes in Earth's composition, climate and life. Each eon is subsequently divided into eras, which in turn are divided into periods, which are further divided into epochs . Eon.
Geologic time is the timescale used to calculate dates in the planet's geologic history from its origin (currently estimated to have been some 4,600 million years ago) to the present day. Radiometric dating measures the steady decay of radioactive elements in an object to determine its age. It is used to calculate dates for the older part of ...
145 Ma. No longer regarded as a major extinction but rather a series of lesser events due to bolide impacts, eruptions of flood basalts, climate change and disruptions to oceanic systems [16] Pliensbachian-Toarcian extinction ( Toarcian turnover) 186-178 Ma. Formation of the Karoo-Ferrar Igneous Provinces [17] Triassic.
The age of Earth is about 4.54 billion years; the earliest undisputed evidence of life on Earth dates from at least 3.5 billion years ago according to the stromatolite record. Some computer models suggest life began as early as 4.5 billion years ago. The oldest evidence of life is indirect in the form of isotopic fractionation.
Geologic time scale. The geologic time scale, proportionally represented as a log-spiral with some major events in Earth's history. A megaannus (Ma) represents one million (10 6) years. The geologic time scale or geological time scale ( GTS) is a representation of time based on the rock record of Earth. It is a system of chronological dating ...