The ChronoZoom Time Atlas of Earth History and Big History by Walter Álvarez • Roland Saekow • David H. Shimabukuro Mark A. Richards • Alexis Ajello Department of Earth and Planetary Science, and University of California Museum of Paleontology University of California, Berkeley 2019 © Walter Álvarez, 2019 Introduction to The ChronoZoom Time Atlas of Earth History and Big History ̹ǡʹͲͳͻ Dz dz ǡǡͳ͵Ǥͺ ǡ ǡ ʹͲͲͻǡ ǡ Ǥ scientific ǡ ǡ Ǧ Ǥ ǡ Ǥ Ǥ ǡ ǡ ǡ ǡ Ǥ ǡ ǡ Ǥ ǡ ǡ Ȅ ǡ ǡ ǡ Ǥ Ǥ ǤDz dz ǡ Ǧͳǡ Ͳǡ ǡ ǡ ǡ ǡ Ǥ ǡ Ǧʹǡ ǡ ͳͲǦͶ͵ Ǥ Ǥ ǡ Dz ǡdz ͳ ǡʹ Ǧ͵ǡ ǡ ǦǢ ȋ ͳͲʹȌ ǡ Ǥǡ Ǥ ǡ ǡ ǡ Ǥ ǡ Ǧ ǡ Ǧͳǡ ǡ ǡ Journal of Big HistoryǤ ǡ͵ Ǥ ǡ Ǥ ǡ ͻǦ Ȅ ǡ ǡ Ǥ ǡ ǡ ǡ Ǥ Ǧ ǤͶ ǡ ǡ Ǧ͵ǡ Ǥ ǡ ǡ ǡ Ǥ ǡ Ǥ ǡ Ǥ Ǥ Ǣ ͷǤ ǡ ͷǡͲͲͲ ǡ ǡ ǡ ǡ ǡ ͷǡͲͲͲ Ǥ ǡ ǡ Ǧ DzǦǤdz Ǥ ǡ Ǥ concept ǡ ǡ ͷǡͲͲͲ Ǥ ǡ ǡ ǡ ǦǦ Ǥ anyoneǡ ǡ Ǥ Ǥ ǡͷ ǡǡ ǡ ǡ ǡ Dzͷǡdz ǡ Ǥ ǡ Ǥ Ǥ Ǥ © 2019 Walter Álvarez All history on a linear scale ChronoZoom Graphical Index (logarithmic) Cosmic history Panels Earth history logarithmic scale 0 All Big Bang- and Big History (Log plot) 13.8 Ga 1 Cosmos (13.8 Ga to now) Life history ( = 2000 A.D.) 4.567 Ga 2 Earth and Life (4.567 Ga to now) Human history (thickness greatly exaggerated) The Big Bang The “Now” “Now” 541 Ma 3 Phanerozoic – Abundant fossils (541 Ma to now) (beginning of time) Earth 4 Cenozoic – Age of mammals (66 Ma to now) 13.8 10 5 0 and 66 Ma billion years ago (Ga) Life 5.33 Ma 5 Plio-Pleisto – Rise of humanity (5.33 Ma to now) On a linear scale, human history, whether written history or genus Homo, is reduced to invisibility, and most of the space is taken up by 780 ka 6 Brunhes normal and Ice age (780 ka to now) pre-Earth Cosmic history, for which little information is availble. Pre-literate humanity 60 ka 7 Out of Africa (60 ka to now) All history on a logarithmic scale 3500 B.C. 8 Civilization and writing (3500 B.C. to now) Cosmos Literate 1400 A.D. 9 Global reconnection (1400 A.D. to now) humanity 1945 10 Post World War II (1945 to now) Earth 1995 11 Sunset of the Millenium (1995 to now) Origin of the Origin (13.8 Ga) Universe of the Formation Earth (4.567 Ga) Chicxulub impact and mass extinction (66 Ma) Humans out of (~ 60 ka)Africa Global reconnection of Humanity (1492) II War World End of (1945 ) (= ”Now”) on a log scale log a on ”Now”) (= Humanity 1999.5 12 Millennium’s end (1999.5 to now) no time zero no is there problem: A before this 10 1 100 10 1 100 10 1 100 10 1 10 1 100 10 1 100 10 1 100 10 1 billion million thousand A.D. = C.E. billion million thousand years ago years ago years ago years ago B.C. = B.C.E. years ago years ago years ago years ago (Ga) (Ma) (ka) (Ga) (Ma) (ka) A logarithmic scale is badly distorted (it looks like all Cosmic history Neither a linear scale nor a logarithmic scale is satisfactory for portraying all of history. The before Earth formed was briefer than from Columbus to World War II), solution adopted in ChronoZoom is to use 12 linear time lines, each covering about 10% of the and there can be no zero on the horizontal scale. previous one, as shown in this index. A problem is that details are available only for recent times. Panel 0: Big-Bang and Cosmos, on a logarithmic time scale (13.8 Ga to now) ̹ǡʹͲͳͻ ȋʹȌ Ǥ ǡ ȋȌ (E)ǡ Ǥ ǡ ǡ Ǥ ǡ ǡ ȋ ǨȌ ǡͳͲǦͶ͵ ǡ Ǥ Ǥ Dzdz(A)Ǥ ǡ ǡ ͳͻ͸Ͷǡ Dz dz Ȅ ǡ Ͷ͸ (B)ǡ ͸Ͳ Ǩ (C)Ǥ ǡǡ Ǥ ǡ ǡ Ǧ Ǥ ȋ͵Ȍ ȋǡ ǡ ʹ ǡ ǡ Ȍ ǡ ͳͲΨ ǡ ȋ Ǥ (H) ǡ Ȍǡ DzdzǤ (F) ǡ Ǥ (I)ǡ ǣ ǡȋ ȋ Ǥ ͵Ȍ ǡ Ȅ see Dz dz Ǥ ǡ ǡ Ͷͷ ͳȌǤ ͸ ǡmost Ǩ ǦǡǦ (J)ǡ ͳͻ͸Ͳǡ ǡ ǡ ǡ ǡ Ǥ Ǧ Ǥ ͳ͵ǤͺǤʹ ǡ ǡ ǡ ͳͻʹͻ Ǥ ǡ (K)Ǥ Ǥͳ ͵Ǧ Ǧ ǡDzǡdz ǡǡ ǡ (L)Ǥ ǡ ͳ͵Ǥͺ (M)͵ ǡ ǡ ͳǤ Ǥ͹ Ǥ ǡ Ǧ ǡ Ǥ ȋ Ȍ ͳͲΨ ǡ (D)ǡ ǡ Ǥ ǡ Ǥ ǡ (G)Ǥ͵ ȋ Ȍǡ ǡ ǡ Ȅ ͳͲǦ͵͸ͳͲǦ͵͵ ǡ Ǥ Ǥ ǣ ͷͲ ǤͶ ȋDzReǦ dz Ȍǡ ȋͳȌǡ ͳͻͺͳ ǡͷ ǡ (D)ǡ ǡ ǡȄ Ǥ ǡ Ǥ Ǧ (N) ȋȌ ǡ Ǥ (O) Ǣ ȋͳȌǤ Ǥ PANEL 0: BIG BANG AND COSMOS, on a logarithmic time scale ~10 1 sec 3 min 10 10 O Starry (Stelliferous) Epoch Starry (Stelliferous) J -6 -12 AK -36 I sec sec H sec Electroweak epoch Quark Hadron Grand epoch The weak nuclear force epoch B N unification and the electro- magnetic First matter Protons, D epoch force are unified; the formed neutrons, and strong nuclear force and Dark age related particles 1020 Strong and gravity are separate. formed weak nuclear forces and the L M electromagnet- epoch Lepton ic force are uni- Photon fied; gravitional Cosmic expansion force is sepa- epoch emitslight Nothing inUniverse rate. Plasma: H and He 100 Radius oftheobserved (m) Universe nuclei in a sea of The convex-upward curvature at the right end unattached electrons of this plot of Cosmic expansion at first sug- gests that expansion accelerated during the by H and He nuclei to form neutralatoms form HandHenucleito by captured are electrons “Re”-combination: galaxies form and evolve andevolve galaxiesform Stars continually forming, forming, Starscontinually Photon epoch of the Big Bang and during the present): to (continuing Dark Age, but this is an artifact produced by particles formed andrelated Electrons the log scale of time. After inflation, expansion -20 F Background radiation) Microwave (Cosmic Emission ofCMB 10 decelerated, due to the pull of gravity, until ac- Nucleosynthesis (Heliumnucleiformed) celeration due to dark energy began to take G effect much later, as shown in the Cosmic-his- 10-43 sec: tory panel (B-1). Planck time (beginning of the smooth 10-40 time we are familiar with) Inflation E 240,000 yr 380,000 yr C ~100 Myr 20 min Today 10-60 4.36 x10 10-40 10-35 10-30 10-25 10-20 10-15 10-10 10-5 110105 10 1015 A Seconds after “the Beginning” 17 sec=13.8Gyr 3 kyr = thousand (10 ) years 1 yr 1 kyr 1 Myr 1 Gyr Years after “the Beginning” Myr = million (106) years Gyr = billion (109) years A fundamental • On a linear time scale, the Big Bang, to the end of the Lepton epoch (3 minutes), is a trivial fraction of Cosmic history. paradox: • On a log time scale like this, the Big Bang, with 45 orders of magnitude, is most of Cosmic history! © Walter Álvarez, 2019 Panel 1: Cosmos (13.