-
Period: to
3.5 billion years ago life in the sea began
About 3.5 billion years ago life in the sea started to bloom. -
Period: to
4.5 billion years ago
About 4.5 billion years ago most astronomers and geologist beieve the Earth was formed. Gravity pulled together a spining cloud of dust and gas to form our Solar System. The center of our Solar System was the sun. The Earth in its early history was super HOT! -
Period: to
Rain fell for a billion years
Rain fell on the still-hot Earth, as that rain fell steam was rising up. A Billion years went by with out a single sunny day. After a while the Earth cooled enough for the rain to stick to the Earth and our Earths Oceans formed. -
Period: to
Life at sea microscopic for over 2 billion years
The Ocean creatures remained microscopic for over 2 billion years. However Life kept evolving on the sea. -
Period: to
600 million years of Earths history
Within the last 600 million years of Earth's history, animals develope external shells and so fossils suddenly appeared in abundance. This time period is know as The Cambrian Explosion. -
Period: to
Fish invade land 430 million years ago
Lungfish, Scorpions, and fern-like plants invanded land 430 million years ago. -
Period: to
360 million years ago Pangaea is formed
360 Million years ago the contients remian as one, but move toward the equator and Pangaea is formed -
Period: to
248 million years ago The Time Of The Great Dying
Shortly after a massive extincition occured, nearly half of all the animal familes disappeared from Earth. 75% amphibians, 80% of reptiles, and 95% of ivertebrates died off. This time is know as The Time Of The Great Dying. -
Period: to
220 million years ago
Up to this point, evolution has been responsible for the shape of the fossils, contiental drift brought them from their home down near the equator and potentially caused them to rise when Africa smaked into North America. Finally, erosion exposed them. -
Period: to
220 million years ago
Now the first true mammals and the first dinosaurs appeared. Pangaea began to separate. -
Period: to
Fist birds appeared 208 million years ago
Now the first birds appeared (they likely evolved from early dinosaurs). Dinosaurs dominate, Pangaea separate further. The fossils we look at are buried beneath other rock and slowly migrated away from the equator to their present resting place. -
Period: to
150 million years to 128 million years ago
The first flowers appeared. The seeds and fruits from flowering plants provided a great energy source. A factor that helped the the warm blooded animals ( mammals and birds) becaome so successful after the extinction of the dinosaurs. -
Period: to
80 to 65 million years ago dinosaurs reached their peak
Dinosaurs reached their pea, toatally dominating the Earth. Mammals remained small and secretive creatures. Pangaea had all seprate continents. -
Period: to
65 million years ago all dinosaurs became extinct
All dinosaurs became extinct. There are many theories about why the dinosaurs all died. Perhaps the climate cooled and they could not all adapt. Perhaps a large meteorite hit the Earth causing a dust cloud that blocked the sun from the Earth. We just don't know. Many other animals died in addition to the dinosaurs. -
Period: to
The fossils we will look at were living now
The fossils we will look at were living now near shallow warm water near the equator. No life has made it to land yet. The contients were united all as one and Africa was over the South Pole this is often called Gondwanaland. The first vertebrateds appeared. -
Period: to
3 million years ago
Include the appearance of man, the most recent "Ice Age", and all written history is contained in the last letter of the last word on this time line.