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Geologic Time Scale

  • Living reference work entry
  • First Online:
Encyclopedia of Geochemistry

Part of the book series: Encyclopedia of Earth Sciences Series ((EESS))

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Definition

The geologic time scale is the scientific reconstruction and representation of Earth’s history from its rock record. The geologic time scale has its origins in the nineteenth-century recognition that through the application of the laws of superposition and fossil succession, a reproducible relative age order of rock strata could be assembled. The geologic time scale consists of two conceptual frameworks, one linked to the observable rock record of superposed sedimentary strata and their embedded physical, chemical, and fossil assemblage characters and the other tied to the theoretical construct of absolute time (Gradstein, 2012). This rock versus time duality of the geologic time scale is manifested in the two distinct nomenclatures for chronostratigraphic and geochronologic age.

Time Scale Construction

In the Phanerozoic and the latest Precambrian, chronostratigraphic units are constructed from fossiliferous strata. The appearance, absence, acme, or coexistence of fossil...

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References

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Geosciences, Boise State University, 1910 University Drive, Boise, ID, USA

    Mark D. Schmitz

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  1. Mark D. Schmitz
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Correspondence to Mark D. Schmitz .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Earth, Cornell University Department of Earth, Ithaca, New York, USA

    William M. White

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Schmitz, M.D. (2016). Geologic Time Scale. In: White, W. (eds) Encyclopedia of Geochemistry. Encyclopedia of Earth Sciences Series. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-39193-9_283-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-39193-9_283-1

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