The Precambrian is the earliest part of Earth's history, set before the current Phanerozoic Eon. The Precambrian is so named because it preceded the Cambrian, the first period of … 展开

Relatively little is known about the Precambrian, despite it making up roughly seven-eighths of the Earth's history, and what is known has largely been discovered from the 1960s onwards. The Precambrian fossil record is poorer than that of the succeeding 展开

Evidence of the details of plate motions and other tectonic activity in the Precambrian is difficult to interpret. It is generally believed that … 展开

The movement of Earth's plates has caused the formation and break-up of continents over time, including occasional formation of a 展开

A specific date for the origin of life has not been determined. Carbon found in 3.8 billion-year-old rocks (Archean Eon) from islands off western Greenland may be of organic origin. Well … 展开

A terminology has evolved covering the early years of the Earth's existence, as radiometric dating has allowed absolute dates to be assigned to … 展开

• Phanerozoic – Fourth and current eon of the geological timescale 展开