RELATIVE AGE OF ROCKS

- Dividing Geologic Time

Divisions in Earth history are recorded on the geologic time scale. For example, the Cretaceous ended when the dinosaurs went extinct. European geologists were the first to put together the geologic time scale. So, many of the names of the time periods are from places in Europe. The Jurassic Period is named for the Jura Mountains in France and Switzerland, for example.