Timeline of natural history

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The geologic record is the strata (layers) of rock in the planet's crust and the science of geology is much concerned with the age and origin of all rocks to determine the history and formation of Earth and to understand the forces that have acted upon it. 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.

Radiocarbon dating is carried out by measuring how much of the carbon-14 and nitrogen-14 isotopes are found in a material. The ratio between the two is used to estimate the material's age. Suitable materials include

In the earliest Solar System history, the Sun, the planetesimals and the jovian planets were formed. The inner Solar System aggregated more slowly than the outer, so the terrestrial planets were not yet formed, including Earth and Moon.

• c. 4,570 Ma – A
  chondrules,^[1] are a key signature of a supernova
  explosion.
• c. 4,567 ±3 Ma – Rapid collapse of
  Milky Way Galaxy.^[2]
• c. 4,566 ±2 Ma – A
  protoplanetary disc (from which Earth eventually forms) emerges around the young Sun, which is in its T Tauri
  stage.
• c. 4,560–4,550 Ma – Proto-Earth forms at the outer (cooler) edge of the
  Early bombardment phase
  begins: because the solar neighbourhood is rife with large planetoids and debris, Earth experiences a number of giant impacts that help to increase its overall size.

• c. 4,533 Ma – The Precambrian (to c. 539 Ma^[3]), now termed a "supereon" but formerly an era, is split into three geological time intervals called eons: Hadean, Archaean and Proterozoic. The latter two are sub-divided into several eras as currently defined. In total, the Precambrian comprises some 85% of geological time from the formation of Earth to the time when creatures first developed exoskeletons (i.e., hard outer parts) and thereby left abundant fossil remains.

Hadean Eon

• c. 4,533 Ma – Hadean Eon,
  water vapour, with lesser amounts of hydrogen sulfide, carbon monoxide, then carbon dioxide
  . With further full outgassing over 1000–1500 K, nitrogen and ammonia become lesser constituents, and comparable amounts of methane, carbon monoxide, carbon dioxide, water vapour, and hydrogen are released.
• c. 4,500 Ma – Sun enters main sequence: a solar wind sweeps the Earth-Moon system clear of debris (mainly dust and gas). End of the Early Bombardment Phase. Basin Groups Era begins on Earth.
• c. 4,450 Ma – 100 million years after the Moon formed, the first lunar crust, formed of lunar anorthosite, differentiates from lower magmas. The earliest Earth crust probably forms similarly out of similar material. On Earth the pluvial period starts, in which the Earth's crust cools enough to let oceans form.
• c. 4,404 Ma – First known
  amino acids and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons
  (PAH)).
• c. 4,300 Ma – Nectarian Era begins on Earth.
• c. 4,250 Ma – Earliest evidence for life, based on unusually high amounts of light isotopes of carbon, a common sign of life, found in Earth's oldest mineral deposits located in the Jack Hills of Western Australia.^[4]
• c. 4,100 Ma –
  Late heavy bombardment of the Moon (and probably of the Earth as well) by bolides and asteroids, produced possibly by the planetary migration of Neptune into the Kuiper belt as a result of orbital resonances between Jupiter and Saturn.^[5] "Remains of biotic life" were found in 4.1 billion-year-old rocks in Western Australia.^[6][7] According to one of the researchers, "If life arose relatively quickly on Earth ... then it could be common in the universe."^[6]

Eoarchean Era

• c. 4,031 Ma – Archean Eon and
  metamorphic rocks
  . Origins of life.
• c. 4,030 Ma –
  oldest rock, or aggregate
  of minerals.
• c. 3,930 Ma – Possible stabilization of Canadian Shield begins
• c. 3,920–3,850 Ma – Final phase of Late Heavy Bombardment
• c. 3,850 Ma – Greenland apatite shows evidence of ¹²C enrichment, characteristic of the presence of photosynthetic life.^[8]
• c. 3,850 Ma – Evidence of life: Akilia Island graphite off Western Greenland contains evidence of kerogen, of a type consistent with photosynthesis.^{[citation needed]}
• c. 3,800 Ma – Oldest
  cratons, formed of granite blocks, appear on Earth. Occurrence of initial felsic igneous activity on eastern edge of Antarctic craton as first great continental mass begins to coalesce. East European Craton begins to form – first rocks of the Ukrainian Shield and Voronezh Massif
  are laid down
• c. 3,750 Ma – Nuvvuagittuq Greenstone Belt forms
• c. 3,700 Ma –
  Kaapval craton begins: old tonaltic gneisses
  laid down

• c. 3,600 Ma –
  Kaapval craton, oldest mountains in Africa – area called the "genesis of life" for exceptional preservation of fossils. Narryer Gneiss Terrane stabilizes: these gneisses become the "bedrock" for the formation of the Yilgarn Craton in Australia – noted for the survival of the Jack Hills
  where the oldest mineral, a zircon was uncovered.
• c. 3,500 Ma – Lifetime of the
  Warrawoona, Western Australia.^{[citation needed}
  ]
• c. 3,480 Ma – Fossils of microbial mat found in 3.48 billion-year-old sandstone discovered in Western Australia.^[11][12] First appearance of stromatolitic organisms that grow at interfaces between different types of material, mostly on submerged or moist surfaces.
• c. 3,460 Ma – Fossils of bacteria in chert.^{[citation needed]} Zimbabwe Craton stabilizes from the suture of two smaller crustal blocks, the Tokwe Segment to the south and the Rhodesdale Segment or Rhodesdale gneiss to the north.
• c. 3.400 Ma – Eleven
  silica-rich microcrystalline, cryptocrystalline or microfibrious material, it preserves small fossils quite well. Stabilization of Baltic Shield
  begins.
• c. 3.340 Ma – Johannesburg Dome forms in South Africa: located in the central part of Kaapvaal Craton and consists of trondhjemitic and tonalitic granitic rocks intruded into mafic-ultramafic greenstone – the oldest granitoid phase recognised so far.
• c. 3,300 Ma – Onset of
  plutons
  on the Kaapvaal Craton.
• c. 3,260 Ma – One of the largest recorded impact events occurs near the Barberton Greenstone Belt, when a 58 km (36 mi) asteroid leaves a crater almost 480 km (300 mi) across – two and a half times larger in diameter than the Chicxulub crater.^[14]

Mesoarchean Era

• c. 3,200 Ma –
  Onverwacht series
  in South Africa form – contain some of the oldest microfossils mostly spheroidal and carbonaceous alga-like bodies.
• c. 3,200–2,600 Ma – Assembly of the Ur supercontinent to cover between 12 and 16% of the current continental crust. Formation of Limpopo Belt.
• c. 3,100 Ma – Fig Tree Formation: second round of fossilizations including Archaeosphaeroides barbertonensis and Eobacterium. Gneiss and greenstone belts in the Baltic Shield are laid down in Kola Peninsula, Karelia and northeastern Finland.
• c. 3,000 Ma – Humboldt Orogeny in Antarctica: possible formation of
  Stromatolites: microbial mats become successful forming the first reef building communities on Earth in shallow warm tidal pool zones (to 1.5 Gyr). Tanzania Craton
  forms.
• c. 2,940 Ma – Yilgarn Craton of western Australia forms by the accretion of a multitude of formerly present blocks or terranes of existing continental crust.
• c. 2,900 Ma – Assembly of the
  Baltic shield
  , formed at c.3100 Ma. Narryer Gneiss Terrane (including Jack Hills) of Western Australia undergoes extensive metamorphism.

Neoarchean Era

• c. 2,800 Ma – Neoarchean Era starts. Breakup of the Vaalbara: Breakup of supercontinent Ur as it becomes a part of the major supercontinent Kenorland. Kaapvaal and Zimbabwe cratons join together.
• c. 2,770 Ma – Formation of
  Hamersley Basin on the southern margin of Pilbara Craton – last stable submarine-fluviatile environment between the Yilgarn and Pilbara prior to rifting, contraction and assembly of the intracratonic Gascoyne Complex
  .
• c. 2,750 Ma – Renosterkoppies Greenstone Belt forms on the northern edge of the Kaapvaal Craton.
• c. 2,736 Ma – Formation of the Temagami Greenstone Belt in Temagami, Ontario, Canada.
• c. 2,707 Ma – Blake River Megacaldera Complex begins to form in present-day Ontario and Quebec – first known Precambrian supervolcano – first phase results in creation of 8 km long, 40 km wide, east–west striking Misema Caldera* – coalescence of at least two large mafic shield volcanoes.
• c. 2,705 Ma – Major komatiite eruption, possibly global^[13] – possible mantle overturn event.
• c. 2,704 Ma – Blake River Megacaldera Complex: second phase results in creation of 30 km long, 15 km wide northwest–southeast trending New Senator Caldera – thick massive mafic sequences which has been inferred to be a subaqueous lava lake.
• c. 2,700 Ma – Biomarkers of cyanobacteria discovered, together with steranes (sterols of cholesterol), associated with films of eukaryotes, in shales located beneath banded iron formation hematite beds, in Hamersley Range, Western Australia;^[15] skewed sulfur isotope ratios found in pyrites show a small rise in oxygen concentration in the atmosphere;^[16] Sturgeon Lake Caldera forms in Wabigoon greenstone belt – contains well preserved homoclinal chain of greenschist facies, metamorphosed intrusive, volcanic and sedimentary layers (Mattabi pyroclastic flow considered third most voluminous eruptive event); stromatolites of Bulawayo series in Zimbabwe form – first verified reef community on Earth.
• c. 2,696 Ma – Blake River Megacaldera Complex: third phase of activity constructs classic east-northeast striking Noranda Caldera which contains a 7-to-9-km-thick succession of mafic and felsic rocks erupted during five major series of activity. Abitibi greenstone belt in present-day Ontario and Quebec begins to form: considered world's largest series of Archean greenstone belts, appears to represent a series of thrusted subterranes.
• c. 2,690 Ma – Formation of high pressure granulites in the Limpopo Central Region.
• c. 2,650 Ma – Insell Orogeny: occurrence of a very high grade discrete tectonothermal event (a UHT metamorphic event).
• c. 2,600 Ma – Oldest known giant carbonate platform.^[13] Saturation of oxygen in ocean sediments is reached as oxygen now begins to dramatically appear in Earth's atmosphere.

Proterozoic Eon

The Proterozoic (from c. 2500 Ma to c. 541 Ma) saw the first traces of biological activity. Fossil remains of bacteria and algae.

Paleoproterozoic Era

Siderian Period

• c. 2,500 Ma – Proterozoic Eon, Paleoproterozoic Era, and
  Angaran Shield
  and Slave Province.
• c. 2,440 Ma – Formation of Gawler Craton in Australia.
• c. 2,400 Ma –
  glaciation starts, probably from oxidation of earlier methane greenhouse gas produced by burial of organic sediments of photosynthesizers. Formation of Dharwar Craton in southern India
  .
• c. 2,400 Ma – Dharwar Craton in southern India stabilizes.

Rhyacian Period

• c. 2,300 Ma – Rhyacian period starts.
• c. 2,250 Ma –
  platinum-group metals (platinum, palladium, osmium, iridium, rhodium and ruthenium), as well as vast quantities of iron, tin, chromium, titanium and vanadium appear – formation of Transvaal Basin
  begins.
• c. 2,200–1800 Ma –
  Eburnean Orogeny, series of tectonic, metamorphic and plutonic events establish Eglab Shield to the north of West African Craton and Man Shield to its south – Birimian domain of West Africa
  established and structured.
• c. 2,200 Ma – Iron content of ancient fossil soils shows an oxygen built up to 5–18% of current levels.
  Stillwater Complex
  forms.
• c. 2,100 Ma –
  Francevillian Group Fossil); Wopmay orogeny along western margin of Canadian Shield
  .
• c. 2,090 Ma – Eburnean Orogeny: Eglab Shield experiences syntectonic trondhjemitic pluton intrusion of its Chegga series – most of the intrusion is in the form of a plagioclase called oligoclase.
• 2.070 Ma – Eburnean Orogeny: asthenospheric upwelling releases large volume of post-orogenic magmas – magma events repeatedly reactivated from the Neoproterozoic to the Mesozoic.

• c. 2,050 Ma – Orosirian Period starts. Significant orogeny in most continents.
• c. 2,023 Ma – Vredefort impact structure forms.
• c. 2,005 Ma – Glenburgh Orogeny (to c. 1,920 Ma) begins:
  Glenburgh Terrane in western Australia
  begins to stabilize during period of substantial granite magmatism and deformation; Halfway Gneiss and Moogie Metamorphics result. Dalgaringa Supersuite (to c. 1,985 Ma), comprising sheets, dykes and viens of mesocratic and leucocratic tonalite, stabilizes.
• c. 2,000 Ma – The lesser
  natural nuclear reactor of Gabon produced by uranium-precipitant bacteria.^[18]
• c. 1,900–,880 Ma – Gunflint chert biota forms flourishes including prokaryotes like Kakabekia, Gunflintia, Animikiea and Eoastrion
• c. 1,850 Ma – Sudbury impact structure. Penokean orogeny. Bacterial viruses (bacteriophage) emerge before, or soon after, the divergence of the prokaryotic and eukaryotic lineages.^[19]
• c. 1,830 Ma – Capricorn Orogeny (1.83–1.78 Gyr) stabilizes central and northern Gascoyne Complex: formation of pelitic and psammitic schists known as Morrissey Metamorphics and depositing Pooranoo Metamorphics an amphibolite facies

Statherian Period

• c. 1,800 Ma – Statherian Period starts. Supercontinent Columbia forms, one of whose fragments being Nena. Oldest ergs develop on several cratons^[13] Barramundi Orogeny (c. 1.8 Gyr) influences MacArthur Basin in Northern Australia.
• c. 1,780 Ma – Colorado Orogeny (1.78 – 1.65 Gyr) influences southern margin of Wyoming craton–collision of Colorado orogen and Trans-Hudson orogen with stabilized Archean craton structure
• c. 1,770 Ma – Big Sky Orogeny (1.77 Gyr) influences southwest Montana: collision between Hearne and Wyoming cratons
• c. 1,765 Ma – As Kimban Orogeny in Australian continent slows, Yapungku Orogeny (1.765 Gyr) begins affecting Yilgarn craton in Western Australia – possible formation of Darling Fault, one of longest and most significant in Australia
• c. 1,760 Ma – Yavapai Orogeny (1.76–1.7 Gyr) impacts mid- to south-western United States
• c. 1,750 Ma – Gothian Orogeny (1.75–1.5 Gyr): formation of tonalitic-granodioritic plutonic rocks and calc-alkaline volcanites in the East European Craton
• c. 1,700 Ma – Stabilization of second major continental mass, the Guiana Shield in South America
• c. 1,680 Ma – Mangaroon Orogeny (1.68–1.62 Gyr), on the Gascoyne Complex in Western Australia: Durlacher Supersuite, granite intrusion featuring a northern (Minnie Creek) and southern belt – heavily sheared orthoclase porphyroclastic granites
• c. 1,650 Ma – Kararan Orogeny (1.65 Gyr) uplifts great mountains on the Gawler Craton in Southern Australia – formation of Gawler Range including picturesque Conical Hill Track and "Organ Pipes" waterfall

Mesoproterozoic Era

Calymmian Period

• c. 1,600 Ma – Mesoproterozoic Era and
  Vishnu Schist and Grand Canyon Series, are formed establishing basement of Canyon with metamorphosed gneisses that are intruded by granites. Belt Supergroup
  in Montana/Idaho/BC formed in basin on edge of Laurentia.
• c. 1,500 Ma – Supercontinent Columbia splits apart: associated with continental rifting along western margin of Laurentia, eastern India, southern Baltica, southeastern Siberia, northwestern South Africa and North China Block-formation of Ghats Province in India. First structurally complex eukaryotes (Horodyskia, colonial formamiferian?).

Ectasian Period

• c. 1,400 Ma –
  Platform covers expand. Major increase in Stromatolite
  diversity with widespread blue-green algae colonies and reefs dominating tidal zones of oceans and seas
• c. 1,300 Ma – Break-up of Columbia Supercontinent completed: widespread anorogenic magmatic activity, forming anorthosite-mangerite-charnockite-granite suites in North America, Baltica, Amazonia and North China – stabilization of Amazonian Craton in South America Grenville orogeny(to c. 1,000 Ma) in North America: globally associated with assembly of Supercontinent Rodinia establishes Grenville Province in Eastern North America – folded mountains from Newfoundland to North Carolina as Old Rag Mountain forms
• c. 1,270 Ma – Emplacement of Mackenzie granite mafic dike swarm – one of three dozen dike swarms, forms into Mackenzie Large Igneous Province – formation of Copper Creek deposits
• c. 1,250 Ma – Sveconorwegian Orogeny (to c. 900 Ma) begins: essentially a reworking of previously formed crust on the Baltic Shield
• c. 1,240 Ma – Second major dike swarm, Sudbury dikes form in Northeastern Ontario around the area of the Sudbury Basin

Stenian Period

• c. 1,200 Ma –
  Red alga Bangiomorpha pubescens, earliest fossil evidence for sexually reproducing organism.^[20] Meiosis and sexual reproduction are present in single-celled eukaryotes, and possibly in the common ancestor of all eukaryotes.^[21] Supercontinent of Rodinia
  (1.2 Gyr–750 Ma) completed: consisting of North American, East European, Amazonian, West African, Eastern Antarctica, Australia and China blocks, largest global system yet formed – surrounded by superocean Mirovia
• c. 1,100 Ma – First
  Keweenawan Rift buckles in the south-central part of the North American plate – leaves behind thick layers of rock that are exposed in Wisconsin, Minnesota, Iowa and Nebraska and creates rift valley where future Lake Superior
  develops.
• c. 1,080 Ma – Musgrave Orogeny (c. 1.080 Gyr) forms Musgrave Block, an east–west trending belt of granulite-gneiss basement rocks – voluminous Kulgera Suite of granite and Birksgate Complex solidify
• c. 1,076 Ma – Musgrave Orogeny: Warakurna large igneous province develops – intrusion of Giles Complex and Winburn Suite of granites and deposition of Bentley Supergroup (including Tollu and Smoke Hill Volcanics)
• c. 1,010 Ma –
  Canadian Arctic) with fungal affinity.^[22]

• c. 2.58 Ma – start of the
  sabre-toothed cats
  , appears.
• c. 2.4 Ma – The Amazon River takes its present shape in South America.
• c. 2.0–1.5 Ma – The basin of the Congo River acquires its present shape.
• c. 1.9 Ma – Oldest known Homo erectus fossils. This species might be evolved some time before, up to c. 2 Ma ago.
• c. 1.7 Ma – Australopithecines go extinct.
• c. 1.8–0.8 Ma –
  colonisation of Eurasia by Homo erectus
  .
• c. 1.5 Ma – earliest possible evidence of the controlled use of fire by Homo erectus
• c. 1.2 Ma – Homo antecessor evolves. Paranthropus dies out.
• c. 0.79 Ma – earliest demonstrable evidence of the controlled use of fire by Homo erectus
• c. 0.7 Ma – last reversal of the Earth's magnetic field
• c. 0.7 Ma: oldest archaic hominins that broke away from the modern human lineage that were found to have inserted into the Sub-Saharan African population genome approximately 35,000 years ago.^[24]
• c. 0.64 Ma –
  Yellowstone caldera
  erupts
• c. 0.6 Ma – Homo heidelbergensis evolves.
• c. 0.5 Ma – First brown bears.
• c. 0.315 Ma –
  Homo sapiens in Africa

The history of nature from the Big Bang to the present day with notable events annotated. Every billion years (Ga) is represented by 90 degrees of rotation of the spiral. The last 500 million years are represented in a 90-degree stretch for more detail on our recent history.

See also

• Astronomical chronology
  • Age of Earth
  • Age of the universe
• Chronological dating, archaeological chronology
  • Absolute dating
  • Relative dating
  • Phase (archaeology)
  • Archaeological association
• Geochronology
  • Future of Earth
  • Geologic time scale
  • Geological history of Earth
  • Plate reconstruction
  • Plate tectonics
  • Thermochronology
  • Timeline of natural history
    • Detailed logarithmic timeline
    • Terasecond and longer
    • Timeline of the far future
  • List of geochronologic names
• General
  • Consilience, evidence from independent, unrelated sources can "converge" on strong conclusions

References