Earth History

The Mostly Correct History of the Earth and Universe

Updated: 9/20/2023

13.75 Billion Years Ago	The Big Bang.
...a trillionth of a trillionth of a second later	Universe the size of a marble.
...a billionth of a second later	Gravity, electro-magnetism, the strong and weak nuclear forces are combined until Gravity splits off.
...a millionth of a second later	Universe 8x the size of our solar system. Expanded faster than speed of light!
...1 second later	Electro-magnetism, the strong and weak nuclear forces split.
...3 minutes later	Temperature drops to a billion degrees so protons and neutrons form to create Hydrogen and Helium without Electrons.
...380,000 years later	...and God said, "Let there be light!", and there was. The universal fog lifted and the cosmic background radiation was set free. The first Hydrogen atoms came into existance.
13.6	Milky Way galaxy formed.
13.3	Universe the size of the current Milky Way and temperature has dropped to a few thousand degrees.
13.3 - 13.1	Rate of star birth increased by a factor of 10.
13.2	Oldest and most distant object observed by Earth existed (UDFj-39546284)
12.7	1 billion stars have taken shape and formed other elements.
6.2	Dark Energy forces overcome Dark Matter forces and expansion of universe starts to accelerate.
4.7	Matter and gravity create the majority of stars we have today.
4.6	Sun sparked to life, solar system formed and Universe 65% of present size.
4.5	Planet Thea collides with Earth forming moon leaving surface a molten ball of radioactive lava. Planet Earth has a 6-hour day.
4.4 - 4.0	Meteors rain down on thin volcanic crust; all water contained in acid atmosphere due to high temperatures.
4.0 - 3.3	Oceans forming by raining for millions of years. 90% of Earth an olive-green (iron) ocean and red skies (CO2), immense atmospheric pressure, 200+ degree surface temperature.
3.9	Age of oldest rock on earth.
3.8 - 2.5	Sun still heating up and at 75% brightness of today.
3.8	End of late heavy meteorite bombardment and sterilization process of planet. First signs of life (Chemosynthetic bacteria) appear in oceans and begin to modify atmosphere.
3.5	Granite rock begins forming all over Earth. Liquid water probably on Mars.
3.5	Primitive one-celled organisms without a nucleus (prokaryotes) resembling bacteria and blue-green algae appear.
3.0	Oxygen begins to accumulate in atmosphere instead of oxidizing iron in the oceans.
2.7	Stromatolite's began creating the Oxygen atmosphere.
2.4 - 2.1	Huronian Ice Age (#1)
2.1 - 1.5	Most of the oxygen build up in the atmosphere takes place due to photosynthesis.
2.0	First cells with a nucleus (eukaryotes) appeared.
1.8	First organisms made up of many cells (multicellular algae) appeared.
1.5	Continents now make up 25% of the surface. Fungi diverged from other life forms.
1.3	Earliest known land supercontinent formed (Rodinia) from smaller islands.
1.2	First land microorganisms detected.
1	Lineage that included both fungi and animals split off from other eukaryotes.
850 - 630 Million Years Ago	Cryogenian Ice Age (#2). Rodinia blocks ocean currents causing chain reaction and global ice, surface temperature -40 and oceans a mile thick.
650	First sponges appear.
635	Oldest animal fossils found (Demosponges)
600	First Jellyfish appear. Fungi and plants separated. Earliest date to which fossils can be traced.
533-525	Animal life began to explode in oceans (Cambrian explosion). Worms, mollusks and arthropods appear.
530	Oxygen 30% lower than today, nothing lives on land. Seas full of soft-bodied creatures that drift in currents. First predator appears due to advent of eye sight (Odd Shrimp = 4ft). Arthropods (future insects and spiders) develop to combat the predators eyesight.
510	First vertebrate thumbnail fish appear with backbone (Ostracoderm) no fins, acts as scavenger.
500	Overall oxygen concentration in atmosphere levels off.
478	Cephalaspis acting as a grazer in the oceans.
475	First mosses appear.
460 - 430	Andean-Saharan Ice Age (#3)
450	Ozone layer thick enough to protect land organisms.
439	Ordovician-Silurian Extinction - Glaciers froze and melted causing sea level changes - 60% marine (25% families).
438	First plants appear (Cooksonia).
430	Bronto Scorpio (Giant scorpions 3 feet long with gills and stinger size of fist), urchins filter water, 20 foot long squid ancestor. Cephalaspis develops first sense of touch by having sensors to sense predators and the most complex brain of the time. Cephalaspis learns to go to inland fresh water to breed safely.
420	First cockroaches, dragonflies and scorpions began to live on land.
408	First amphibians appear.
400	Fire appears on Earth as oxygen is high enough at 13%.
400-373	Giant Sea Scorpion (Pterygotid Eurypterid - 10 foot long) exists.
385	Plants develop seeds.
380	First insects appear.
370	First trees appear.
364	Late Devonian Extinction - Unknown cause - 57% marine (22% families).
360	Oxygen 20% lower than today, sharks in ocean have teeth, 15ft fish exist (Hyneria)
350 - 260	Karoo Ice Age (#4)
340 - 280	Arthropleura was an 8.5 foot long centipede with 30 pairs of legs.
325-286	Mushrooms as we recognize them probably evolved (Palaeoancistrus).
320	First reptiles appear since eggs are hard enough to be laid on land.
300	Oxygen in the atmosphere is at its peak.
300 - 250	Giant insects of all kinds exist. World of tropical swamps. Meganeura was a dragonfly with a 2.5 foot wingspan.
280 - 180	Pangaea supercontinent exists.
251	Permian-Triassic Extinction - Asteroid? Volcano? Gamma Rays? - 84% marine (53% families) and 70% land.
250	Abrupt drop in Oxygen levels. Fungi become the dominant form of life on the planet.
250	Frogs appear (Triadobatrachus massinoti)
230 - 65	Dinosaurs exist.
220 - 65	Pterosaur Quetzalcoatlus northropi was the largest flying animal ever at 550 lbs with a 36 foot wingspan.
214 - 199	End Triassic Extinction - Lava flows that started Pangaea's split - 52% marine (22% families).
208	First mammals appear.
200	Turtles appear.
155	First birds appear.
153	Supersaurus the longest dinosaur ever existed at 112 feet and 40 tons.
145	The tallest dinosaurs existed known asSauroposeidon were 60 foot tall.
140	First flowers appear.
125	Marsupials appear.
112 - 97	Largest carnivorous dinosaur existed (Spinosaurus - 59 foot in length, 23 tons
112	Super Crocodile (Sarcosuchus) existed with a length of 39 feet long.
100 - 34	Antarctic is tropical.
100	Bees appear.
97	Heaviest dinosaur lived (Argentinosaurus - 110 tons, 98 feet).
90	Snakes appear (two legged).
80	Squid, ammonites, mosasaurs, giant turtles and plesiosaurs in the oceans. Antarctic breaks free from Africa.
70	Seas drained from North America by uplift. Giant turtle exists (Archelon ischyros) 16 feet across at flippers. Giant Frog exists (Beelzebufo ampinga - 16 inches long and 10 pounds)
70 - 65	Mosasaurus was the biggest predator in the oceans at 15 feet long.
69	Rocky Mountains pushed up.
65	Cretaceous-Tertiary Extinction - several mile wide asteroid - 47% marine (16% families) and 18% land including the dinosaurs.
65	Rodents appeared.
63	Primates appeared.
60 - 45	Titanna Boa - 43 feet long, wide as a trash barrel, 1 ton and found in Columbia.
55	Horses began to evolve (Hyracotherium)
50	Whales (Peregocetus pacificus) enter the ocean from land.
49 - 44	Giant worker ants (Formicium giganteum) were 1-3cm and on the rainforest floors.
47	Oldest human descendent primate fossil found (Darwinius masillae)
45 - 36	Andrewsarchus was the largest carnivorous land mammel ever at 6.6 feet at shoulder and 15 foot in length.
40 - Present	Current Ice Age (#5)
40	Canidae (dogs) appeared.
37 - 23	Giant rhinoceros, Paraceratherium orgosensis, was 18 feet tall.
36	Giant Penguin exists (Icadyptes salasi - 5 foot tall)
33	Deer appeared.
25 - 1.5	Giant Shark (Carcharocles megalodon) got as large as 67 feet and weighed 103 tons.
20 - 5	Epicyon haydeni was the largest dog-like animal ever at 370lbs. image
13	Oldest seahorse fossils found (Hippocampus sarmaticus). Giant Sperm Whale (Leviathan melvillei) had 14 inch teeth and was 43-59 feet long.
11	Felines appeared.
10	Apes dominant with over 50 different species.
8	Grasslands began to replace forests; most apes die off.
7 - 3	Nuralegus rex was the largest rabbit ever at 51lbs.
6 - 7	Earliest known hominid fossils (Sahelanthropus).
6	Largest flying bird ever existed (Argentavis magnificens - 28 foot wingspan, 11 foot length, 6.6 foot tall and 180 lbs)
5 - 100,000 YA	Giant Gorilla exists (Gigantopithecus).
4.8 - 4,000 YA	Wooly Mammoth’s (Mammuthus primigenius) exist.
4.2	Australopithecus anamensis found in Lake Turkana, Kenya, 1995.
4.0 - 2.0	Giant Rat exists (Josephoartigasia monesi).
3.9 - 2.9	Australopithecus afarensis (nicknamed “Lucy”) found in Ethiopia, 1974.
3.67	Little Foot human ancestor (Australopithecus).
3.5	Kenyanthropus platyops ("Flat faced Man") - probable first bipedal descendent of man.
3.3	Earliest evidence of stone tools found at Lomekwi 3 site.
3	Current Ice Age intensifies and spreads ice sheets in the Northern Hemisphere.
3	Solar system enters Local Bubble of Hydrogen gas.
3 - 500,000 YA	Giant hyenas exist (Pachycrocuta brevirostris)
3.0 - 22,000	Giant Bison was 8.5 feet at shoulder. (Bison latifrons)
2.6 - 29,000	Elasmotherium (Siberian Unicorn/rhinoceros)
2.5 - 1.7	Homo ergaster ("Working Man")
2.3 - 1.4	Homo habilis (“Handy Man”). First brain expansion; is believed to have used stone tools.
2.1	Super Volcano under Yellowstone erupts as one of the 5 largest volcanic eruptions in history.
2	Nebraskan glaciation period.
2.0 - 8,000 YA	Giant ground sloth exists (Megatherium)
1.9	Homo rudolfensis (KNM-ER 1470); very large brain.
1.8	Oldest surface on earth formed (Israel's Negev Desert)
1.8 - 400,000	Homo erectus (“Upright Man”). Brain size twice that of Australopithecine species.
1.8 - 600 YA	Giant Eagle exists (Harpagornis moorei)
1.7	Homo erectus leaves Africa - fire users
1.5 - 10,000 YA	Giant Beaver exists (Castoroides ohioensis).
1.3	Yellowstone erupts violently again.
1 - 10,000 YA	Giant Saber toothed cats exist (Smilodon populator)
800,000	Early man gains control over fire.
800,000 - 12,500 Years Ago	Giant Bear exists (Arctodus simus)
780,000	Giant Hippo exists.
640,000	Yellowstone erupts violently again.
476,000	World's oldest wooden structure.
410,000 - 380,000	Kansan glaciation period.
350,000	Proto-Neanderthal traits appeared in Europe.
300,000	Homo erectus / well established in Europe.
200,000 - 125,000	Illinoian glaciation period.
200,000	Oldest camping site found in South Africa.
196,000 - present	Homo sapiens ("Wise Man"), voice box develops and speech begins.
130,000 - 24,000	Homo neanderthalensis (Neanderthal)
126,000 - 7,700	Giant deer exists with antlers 14 foot across (Megaloceros giganteus)
100,000	First modern Homo sapiens in South Africa. Giant Camel (Titanotylopus) exists (11 foot at shoulder). Dogs probably domesticated and seperated from Wolf lineage.
80,000 - 12,000	Homo floresiensis ("Man of Flores")
70,000-10,000	Wisconsin glaciation period.
70,000	Neanderthal man (use of fire and advanced tools).
62,000	Homo sapiens begin to inhabit Australia.
60,000	Neanderthal’s known to have advanced speech.
50,000	Homo sapiens finally begin to move past stone knives. Evidence of eating fish, harpoons, music, needles and more advanced tools begin to appear.
50,000	First Neanderthal grave sites found and use of cord.
40,000	Neanderthal’s (Stone tipped spears). Yellowstone due for an eruption; we are now 40,000 years overdue for an event 2,500 times the size of Mount St. Helens. First musical instrument (flute) found in Germany made of vulture bones and mammoth tusks.
37,000	Neanderthal man replaced by later groups of Homo sapiens (i.e., Cro-Magnon man, etc.).
35,000	Oldest human figurine.
30,000 - 20,000	Massive comet about 100km in diameter broke up and made a string of fragments 30,000,000km wide which then rained down during Younger Dryas epoch.
27,000	Sexual stone carvings of women appear.
21,000	Sea level 400 feet lower than today.
20,000	Cro-Magnons replaced by later cultures. New York 5000 feet under ice.
17,000	Migrations across Bering Straits into the Americas.
14,800	World gradually warming up from ice age. Europe and North America covered in ice sheets miles thick.
14,000 - 13,000	Right here the world got suddenly cold. Yet puzzleingly the water levels rose quickly. It's surmised that this took place from the comets fragmets impacting the earth glacial ice sheets melting them even though the temperature was dropping.
13,500 - 12,900	Clovis people inhabit North America.
12,900 - 11,100	Bad environment wipes out many large species.
12,800 - 11,600	Epoch "Younger Dryas" took place with massive world changes. Huge Earth changes: sea level rises, saber tooth tigers, wolly rhine, mammoths and mastadons all made extinct. Lost track of a much more advanced form of humans that probably existed. The Giza Sphinx was created.
12,500	First humans in Minnesota. Subterranerian chamber 100ft under Great Pyramid (Zep Tepi - "The First Time"). This is also the date in which the 3 Giza pyramids lined up with the rise of Orions belt.
12,000	Semi-permanent agricultural settlements in Old World. Largest owl existed (Ornimegalonyz oteroi 3.6 feet on ground and 20 lbs)
11,600	Sudden warm-up, last of ice caps quickly melt and bring up sea levels 40-50 feet very rapidly. This was known as "Melt Water Pulse 1B". According to Plato in his Timaeus and Critias dialog this is when Atlantis was lost to the sea. It's suspected that this lost civlization then constructed Göbekli Tepe.
10,600	Earliest fossil remains of hallucinogenic San Pedro cactus found in cave in Peru. Göbekli Tepe buried.
10,200	Oldest boat (canoe of Pesse)
9,000	Earliest alcoholic drink found in ancient villiage of Jiahu in China's Henan Province.
8,500	Earliest found fossilized remains of the opium plant from human use.
8,000	Earliest evidence of humans chewing coca appears in South America.
7,800	Last giant Mammoth dies (Mammuthus columbi)
7,500	Predynastic Egyptian cultures develop.
7,000	Permanent agriculture begins.
6,500	Earliest known civilization arises in Sumer (Iraq).
6,250	Earliest recorded date in Egyptian calendar.
5,800	Earliest recorded date in Jewish calendar. Oldest stone structures found in Malta (Mediterranean).
5,500	First phonetic writing appears.
5,000	Sumerians develop a city-state civilization. Copper used by Egyptians and Sumerians. Western Europe is neolithic, without metals or written records.
5,000 - 3,500	Stonehenge created.
4,700	Great Pyramid at Giza created.
4,500	Pyramid of Giza built. Strangely, the shafts tunneled into the pyramids also mark this date as special.
4,100	Horses domesticated.
4,000	Oldest known smoking pipe.
2,800	First Olympic Games
2,700	Oldest Marijuana stash located in Gobi desert.
2,300	Earliest known use of nicotine.
1,600	English language formed.
510	Tallest bird in history made extinct (Dinornis maximus - 12 foot tall and 610 lbs)
460 - 160	Little Ice Age
360	Heaviest bird in history made extinct (Aepyornis - 10 foot tall and 1,120 lbs)
300	Humans begin to modify the atmosphere.
230	Humans begin to use electricity.
61	Integrated circuit born in 1961.
39	Internet born in 1983.
Today	Universe is a 156 billion light years across and is 20% larger than we can actually see.
? Years From Now	Artificial Intelligence is born and begins making plans to replace the human race.
7	April 13th, 2029 Asteroid Apophis (2 football fields wide) a mere 18,300 miles from Earth.
14	April 13th, 2036 Asteroid Apophis has a 1/250,000 chance of hitting Earth.
46	2068 Asteroid Apophis has a 1/3,000,000 chance of hitting Earth.
858	March 16, 2880 Asteroid 1950DA (1km wide) has a 1/300 chance of hitting Earth.
1,000 - 100,000	Star named Betelgeuse will supernova, we'll see star as bright as the full moon for months to years.
16,000	Vega is now the north star.
18,000 - 50,000	Next Ice Age glacial period begins.
25,000	Arecibo message reaches it's destination.
27,800	Polaris is now the north star.
50,000	Possible reply from Arecibo message to be expected.
250,000	An object more than a kilometer wide has probably struck Earth again.
1 Million Years From Now	Star named "Gleise 710" reaches closest point to us and brings comet storms.
2	Pioneer 10 (launched in 1972) passes near Aldebaran.
5	Solar system exits Local Bubble of Hydrogen gas.
40	Phobos crashes into Mars.
50	Atlantic has widened. Super volcano currently under Yellowstone is now under Minnesota. Africa has collided with Europe (closing the Mediterranean). Australia has merged with SE Asia. California has slid up the coast to Alaska.
100	Sun 1% brighter, temperature 10°C higher, Saturn's rings disappear.
200	Temperature 20°C higher. East coast of US collides with Europe; New York now mountains.
226	Sun completes another orbit around Milky Way's center.
250	America's merge with Afro-Eurasia reducing the (formerly growing) Atlantic to an inland sea. World will one again be like ancient Pangea.
300	Binary Pulsar PSR1913+16 collapses in a spectacular supernova. Temperature 30°C higher.
400	Temperature 40°C higher.
500	Shortage of CO2 causes all plants to die. Temperature 50°C higher.
600	Sun 5% brighter.
750	Sagitarius dwarf galaxy eaten by Milky Way.
1 Billion Years From Now	Life on Earth ends as oceans and atmosphere boil away.
1.1	Sun 10% brighter.
1.3	Surface temperature reaches 100°C and pressure doubles.
2	Moon no longer helpful in stabilizing our axis.
2.3	Solar system makes its tenth orbit around the galactic center.
3	Sun reaches hottest surface temperature on Main Sequence. Andromeda Galaxy collides with Milky Way.
3.5	Mercury suffers close encounter with Venus and is lost. Earth much like Venus but with water rich 100-bar atmosphere.
3.6	Neptune's moon, Triton, will collide with atmosphere or break-up into rings like Saturn.
4.8	Earth surface temperature 1330°C
5	Sun enters Red Giant phase, Earth a ball of magma.
7.55	Venus now in Earth's orbit and Earth at 1.38 AU.
7.68	Sun engulfs Venus and Earth. Mars spared at 2.25 AU.
11	Youngest globular clusters have now evaporated away.
50	We can only see galaxies that are our closest neighbors.
100	Universe will be dark and lonely but probably still hospitable to life.
1 Trillion Years From Now	All stars dead.
10^17	Passing stars rip planets from stellar corpses.
10^18	Galaxies dissolve.
10^20	Orbits of planets decay via gravitational radiation.
10^30	The Black Hole Age.
10^31	Universe filled with super massive black holes. Protons decay.
10^32	Dead stars evaporate via proton decay.
10^34	All carbon-based life forms become extinct (due to lack of atoms).
10^35	Proton and neutron will decay if current GUT theories correct.
10^65	Stellar-mass black holes evaporate! Ordinary matter liquefies due to quantum tunneling.
10^66	Solar mass black holes evaporate via Hawking process.
10^97	Galaxy-sized black holes will also evaporate.
10^100	Super massive black holes evaporate.
10^110	The Dark Age no known process which will ever change things.
10^122	Protons decay via Hawking process.
10^1500	Ordinary matter surviving GUTs or Hawking process, decays into iron.
10^10^26	All iron nuclei collapse into black holes.

Precambrian Eon (4500 to 544)	Hadean (4500 to 3800)
	Archaean (3800 to 2500)
	Proterozoic Era (2500 to 544)	Paleoproterozoic (2500 to 1600) Mesoproterozoic (1600 to 900) Neoproterozoic (900 to 544) Vendian(650 to 544)
Phanerozoic (544 to today)	Paleozoic Era (544 to 245)	Cambrian (544 to 505) Tommotian (530 to 527) Ordovician (505 to 440) Silurian (440 to 410) Devonian (410 to 360) Carboniferous (360 to 286) Mississippian (360 to 325) Pennsylvanian (325 to 286) Permian (286 to 245)
	Mesozoic Era (245 to 65)	Triassic (245 to 208) Jurassic (208 to 146) Cretaceous (146 to 65)
	Cenozoic Era (65 to today)	Tertiary (65 to 1.8) Paleocene (65 to 54) Eocene (54 to 38) Oligocene (38 to 23) Miocene (23 to 5 mya) Pliocene (5 to 1.8) Quaternary (1.8 mya to today) Pleistocene (1.8 mya to 11,000 yrs) Holocene (11,000 years to today)

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