| Early/Lower Cretaceous | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
.png) A map of Earth as it appeared 120 million years ago during the Early Cretaceous Epoch, Aptian Age | |||||||||
| Chronology | |||||||||
| |||||||||
| Etymology | |||||||||
| Chronostratigraphic name | Lower Cretaceous | ||||||||
| Geochronological name | Early Cretaceous | ||||||||
| Name formality | Formal | ||||||||
| Usage information | |||||||||
| Celestial body | Earth | ||||||||
| Regional usage | Global (ICS) | ||||||||
| Time scale(s) used | ICS Time Scale | ||||||||
| Definition | |||||||||
| Chronological unit | Epoch | ||||||||
| Stratigraphic unit | Series | ||||||||
| Time span formality | Formal | ||||||||
| Lower boundary definition | Not formally defined | ||||||||
| Lower boundary definition candidates |
| ||||||||
| Lower boundary GSSP candidate section(s) | None | ||||||||
| Upper boundary definition | FAD of the Planktonic Foraminifer Rotalipora globotruncanoides | ||||||||
| Upper boundary GSSP | Mont Risoux, Hautes-Alpes, France 44°23′33″N 5°30′43″E / 44.3925°N 5.5119°E | ||||||||
| Upper GSSP ratified | 2002[2] | ||||||||
The Early Cretaceous (geochronological name) or the Lower Cretaceous (chronostratigraphic name) is the earlier or lower of the two major divisions of the Cretaceous. It is usually considered to stretch from 145 Ma to 100.5 Ma.
- ^ International Commission on Stratigraphy. "ICS - Chart/Time Scale". www.stratigraphy.org.
- ^ Kennedy, W.; Gale, A.; Lees, J.; Caron, M. (March 2004). "The Global Boundary Stratotype Section and Point (GSSP) for the base of the Cenomanian Stage, Mont Risou, Hautes-Alpes, France" (PDF). Episodes. 27: 21–32. doi:10.18814/epiiugs/2004/v27i1/003. Retrieved 13 December 2020.