Cretaceous

Cretaceous

Cretaceous (/krɪˈteɪ.ʃəs/, from Latin creta meaning "chalk") is a geologic period and system that spans from 145 to 66 million years ago. In the geologic timescale, the Cretaceous follows the Jurassic period and is followed by the Paleogene period of the Cenozoic era. It is the last period of the Mesozoic era, and, spanning 79 million years, the longest period of the Phanerozoic eon. The Cretaceous was a period with a relatively warm climate, resulting in high eustatic sea levels and creating numerous shallow inland seas. These oceans and seas were populated with now-extinct marine reptiles, ammonites, and rudists, while dinosaurs continued to dominate on land.

Etymology

The name Cretaceous is derived from creta, the Latin word for chalk, and was first applied to strata in the Paris Basin by Belgian geologist Jean d'Omalius d'Halloy in 1822, following a study of the extensive deposits of chalk (calcium carbonate) found in the region.

Pronunciation

The term Cretaceous is pronounced as /krɪˈteɪ.ʃəs/.

Related Terms

• Geologic timescale
• Jurassic period
• Paleogene period
• Cenozoic era
• Mesozoic era
• Phanerozoic eon
• Eustatic sea levels
• Inland seas
• Marine reptiles
• Ammonites
• Rudists
• Dinosaurs
• Calcium carbonate
• Paris Basin
• Jean d'Omalius d'Halloy

External links

• Medical encyclopedia article on Cretaceous
• Wikipedia's article - Cretaceous

This WikiMD dictionary article is a stub. You can help make it a full article.

---

Languages: - East Asian 中文, 日本, 한국어, South Asian हिन्दी, Urdu, বাংলা, తెలుగు, தமிழ், ಕನ್ನಡ,
Southeast Asian Indonesian, Vietnamese, Thai, မြန်မာဘာသာ, European español, Deutsch, français, русский, português do Brasil, Italian, polski