Mesoproterozoic facts for kids
The Mesoproterozoic was a long time in Earth's history. It started about 1,600 million years ago and ended 1,000 million years ago. This era was a very important time for our planet. Many big changes happened, especially with how continents moved and how life evolved.
| Precambrian (4.567 gya – 541 mya) | |
|---|---|
| In the left column are Eons, bold are Eras, not bold are Periods. gya = billion years ago, mya = million years ago | |
| Hadean (4.567 gya – 4 gya) | Chaotian Zirconian |
| Archaean (4 gya – 2.5 gya) | Eoarchaean (4 gya – 3.6 gya)
Palaeoarchaean (3.6 gya – 3.2 gya) |
| Proterozoic (2.5 gya – 541 mya) | Palaeoproterozoic (2.5 gya – 1.6 gya) Siderian (2.5 gya – 2.3 gya) Rhyacian (2.3 gya – 2.05 gya) Orosirian (2.05 gya – 1.8 gya) Statherian (1.8 gya – 1.6 gya)
Mesoproterozoic (1.6 gya – 1 gya) Calymmian (1.6 gya – 1.4 gya) Ectasian (1.4 gya – 1.2 gya) Stenian (1.2 gya – 1 gya) Neoproterozoic (1 gya - 541 mya) Tonian (1 gya – 720 mya) Cryogenian (720 mya – 635 mya) Ediacaran (635 mya – 541 mya) |
Contents
The Mesoproterozoic Era
During the Mesoproterozoic era, Earth saw some major events. Continents moved around a lot, forming and breaking apart huge landmasses called supercontinents. Life also took a big step forward with the development of sexual reproduction.
What Happened During This Time?
Supercontinents: Columbia and Rodinia
One of the first big events was the breakup of a supercontinent named Columbia. This happened around 1,500 million years ago. Imagine a giant puzzle of all the land on Earth. Columbia was one of those puzzles, and it split apart.
Later, around 1,100 million years ago, another supercontinent started to form. This one was called Rodinia. It was a huge landmass that brought many of Earth's continents together again. These movements of continents changed the climate and the oceans.
The Big Leap: Sexual Reproduction
A very important event in the Mesoproterozoic was the evolution of sexual reproduction. Before this, most living things reproduced by simply splitting in two. Sexual reproduction mixes genes from two parents. This creates more variety in offspring. This variety helps life adapt and change over time. It was a huge step for life on Earth.
Early Life Forms
Scientists have found evidence of an ancient type of eukaryotic red alga called Bangiomorpha pubescens. This fossil was found in rocks that are about 1,200 million years old. These rocks are in the Hunting Formation on Somerset Island, Canada.
Bangiomorpha: The Oldest Sexually Reproducing Organism
Bangiomorpha pubescens is special because it is the oldest known sexually reproducing organism. This means it is also the earliest known complex multicellular organism. Before this, most life was very simple and made of only one cell. Finding Bangiomorpha shows us that complex life, with different cells working together, started much earlier than we once thought.
See also
In Spanish: Mesoproterozoico para niños
