Historical Geology GES 102 Geological Time Chart

Students in GES 102 are required to commit the geologic time scale (below) to memory. Please note that each of these terms are proper nouns (capitalized). Each of the lecture examinations will include something about the Geologic Time Scale. The dates listed are from the USGS 1999 Geological Time Scale and will vary from the ones listed in your textbook.
The Mississippian\Pennsylvanian (used in North America) is equivalent to the Carboniferous (used everywhere else).

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Eon Era Period Epoch Mya
Phanerozoic Cenozoic Quaternary Holocene 0.01 - 0
Pleistocene 1.8 - 0.01
Tertiary Pliocene 5.3 - 1.8
Miocene 23.8 - 5.3
Oligocene 33.7 - 23.8
Eocene 54.8 - 33.7
Paleocene 65 - 54.8
Mesozoic Cretaceous     144 - 65
Jurassic     206 - 144
Triassic     248 - 206
Paleozoic Permian     290 - 248
Pennsylvanian Carboniferous   323 - 290
Mississippian   354 - 323
Devonian     417 - 354
Silurian     443 - 417
Ordovician     490 - 443
Cambrian     543 - 490
(Proterozoic) Precambrian       2,500 - 543
(Archean)       4,000 - 2,500
(Hadean)       4,600 - 4,000

OLDEST


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