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| | 5 Trillion years ago | The solar system forms | |
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| | 15 Billion years ago | The universe was born | |
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| | 5 Billion years ago | The Milky Way was born | |
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| | 4 Billion years ago | The Earth was born - Formation of the Earth and the Moon | |
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| | 4.6 to 3.8 Billion years ago | HADEAN From 'Hades' refering to the "hellish" conditions of the Earth. No evidence of life on earth. A mass of dust, elements and particles and volcanic eruptions. Earth developed gravity and formed the earth's crust. | |
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| | 3.8 to 2.5 Billion years ago | ARCHEAN The earliest known rocks formed | |
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| | 2.5 Billion to 570 Million years ago | PROTEROZOIC The first life began to appear as hard-shelled animals. | |
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| | 570 Million years to the Present | PHANEROZOIC Abundant life and diverse animals | |
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| | 570 Million years to 245 Million years | PALEOZOIC Ancient life such as fish, amphibians, and primitive reptiles | |
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| | 245 Million to 65 Million years | MESOZOIC ERA The first mammals and birds appeared | |
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| | 65 Million years to the Present | CENOZOIC ERA Mammals flourished and became dominant | |
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| | 570 Million years to 505 Millions years | Cambrian Period Marine invertebrates (lacking a backbone) appeared, simple fish (big and small) with eyes, mollusks, crustaceans, sponges, worms, corals and aquatic algae. The first insects appeared | |
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| | 505 Million years to 438 Million years | Ordovician Period The origin of land plants Marine life flourished The first vertebrate fish appeared | |
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| | 438 Million to 408 Million years | Silurian Period Fish developed jaws, scales and fins First air-breathing animals Mountains formed | |
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| | 408 to 360 Million years | Devonian Period The appearance of amphibians and the the development of forests, ferns, fungi and seeds. Scorpions and spiders appeared. Amphibians evolved into small reptiles. | |
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| | 360 to 320 Million years | Mississippian Period The first winged insects appeared Ammonites (prehistoric sea creatures similar to modern squid living in coiled shells) appeared. | |
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| | 245 to 208 Million years | Triassic Period The ancestors of dinosaurs were the large reptiles, early mammals and mammal-like reptiles appeared with 'sails' on their backs. | |
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| | 208 to 145 Million years | Jurassic Period The "Age of the Dinosaurs". Huge creatures that walked on two-legs and had powerful claws and teeth. The pterosaurs the first true flying reptiles appeared. The first birds appeared. | |
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| | 145 to 65 Million years | Cretaceous Period The dinosaurs disappeared. The age of reptiles and the appearance of modern insects and flowering plants | |
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| | 65 Million to 1.6 Million years ago | Many mammals developed including primitive whales, rodents, pigs, cats, and rhinos. | |
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| | 2 Million to 4 Million years ago | Gelasian Pleistocene period Apes such as the gorilla and chimpanzee appeared Homo habilis, an upright East African hominid having some advanced humanlike characteristics Australopithecus is an extinct genus of hominids | |
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| | 1.8 Million years ago | Homo erectus meaning "upright man" appeared | |
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| | 600,000–350,000 years ago | Neanderthal (Homo neanderthalensis) an extinct species or subspecies of the genus Homo which is closely related to modern humans | |
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| | 350,000 years ago to present day | Homo Sapiens - modern human | |
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