A Timeline For Planet Formation
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A Timeline for Planet Formation
Era
Time
Description
For decades, geologists
(years)
and astronomers have studied the
contents of our solar system. They
Pre-solar
0.0
Collapse of cloud to form
have compared surface features
Nebula Era
flattened disk
on planets and moons across the
Asteroid Era
3 million
Formation of large
solar
system,
the
orbits
of
asteroids up to 200 km
asteroids and comets, and the
across ends
chemical composition and ages for
Gas Giant Era
10 million
Rapid formation of
recovered meteorites. From all this
Jupiter and Saturn ends
effort, and with constant checking
Solar Birth Era
50 million
Sun’s nuclear reactions
of
data
against
mathematical
start to produce energy
models, scientists have created a
in core
timeline for the formation of our
Planetessimal
51 million
Formation of numerous
solar system.
Era
small planet-sized
bodies ends
Our solar system began as
T-Tauri Era
80 million
Solar winds sweep
a collapsing cloud of gas and dust
through inner solar
over 4.6 billion years ago. Over the
system and strip off
next 600 million years, called by
primordial atmospheres
geologists the Hadean Era, the
Ice Giant Era
90 million
Formation of Uranus and
sun and the planets were formed,
Neptune
and Earth’s oceans were probably
Rocky Planet
100 million
Formation of rocky
created
by
cometary
impacts.
Era
planets by mergers of
Comets are very rich in water ice.
50-100 smaller bodies
Late Heavy
600 million
Migration of Jupiter
The fossil record on Earth
Bombardment
disrupts asteroid belt
shows that the first bacterial life
Era
sending large asteroids
forms emerged about 600 million
to impact planetary
years after the formation of the
surfaces in the inner
solar system. Geologists call this
solar system.
the Archaen Era – The era of
Ocean Era
600 million
LHB transports comets
ancient life.
rich in water to Earth to
form oceans
Life Era
800 million
First traces of life found
in fossils on Earth
Problem 1 – If the Pre-Solar Nebula Era occurred 4.6 billion years ago, how
long ago did the Rocky Planet Era end?
Problem 2 – How many years from the current time did the Late Heavy
Bombardment Era end in the inner solar system?
Problem 3 – About how many years ago do the oldest fossils date from on
Earth?
Problem 4 – How many years were there between the Planetessimal Era and
the end of the Rocky Planet Era?
Problem 5 – If 80 objects the size of the Moon collided to form Earth during the
time period in Problem 4, about how many years elapsed between these impact
events?
Space Math
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