The Cretaceous was named for the extensive chalk deposits of this age in Europe, but in many parts of the world, the deposits from the Cretaceous are of marine limestone, a rock type that …

Nov 4, 2025 · Cretaceous Period, in geologic time, the last of the three periods of the Mesozoic Era. It began 145 million years ago and ended 66 million years ago and featured the extinction …

The Cretaceous Period lasted for nearly 80 million years. Discover what the climate was like in this geological period, where the continents were and what animals and plants lived on them. …

Apr 27, 2023 · In 1882 a Belgian geologist, Omalius d’Halloy, proposed the term “Cretaceous” for strata encircling the Paris Basin in France. The term derives from the Latin word for chalk …

During this period, oceans formed as land shifted and broke out of one big supercontinent into smaller ones. Continents were on the move in the Cretaceous, busy remodeling the shape and …

The Cretaceous period is one of the major divisions of the geologic timescale, reaching from the end of the Jurassic period, from about 146 to 136 million years ago (Ma) to the beginning of …

Jul 26, 2022 · The Cretaceous period lasted approximately 79 million years, and ended with a major extinction event about 66 million years ago.

The Cretaceous is defined as the period between 145.5 and 65.5 million years ago,* the last period of the Mesozoic Era, following the Jurassic and ending with the extinction of the …

Share Kids Definition Cretaceous adjective Cre· ta· ceous kri-ˈtā-shəs : of, relating to, or being the last period of the Mesozoic era of geological history marked by the extinction of the dinosaurs …

Early Cretaceous ... The Early Cretaceous (geochronological name) or the Lower Cretaceous (chronostratigraphic name) is the earlier or lower of the two major divisions of the Cretaceous. …