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The period is called the Carboniferous because rocks from that time period are rich in coal. The rocks are rich in coal because much of the Earth was covered in swamps. The pete moss was then put under tremendous pressure and heat over millions of years, forming the coal.

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Q: Why is the period of rock formation about 360 million years ago called the Carboniferous Period?
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Why is the Carboniferous period called the Carboniferous period?

Carboniferous means carbon bearing. Large coal deposits were laid down then, hence the name.


Which period was 300 million years ago?

There was one spercontinent called Pangaea, which consists of all of the current continents joined together. It existed until 250 million years ago, where it splitted up into Laurasia and Gondwanaland, and further splitted into the current seven continents.


Why are coal and oil and natural gas called fossil fuels?

Coal, petroleum,and natural gas, are called fossil fuels because they were formed millions of years ago, during the Carboniferous period.


Geologic events of the Carboniferous period?

== == The Carboniferous Period occurred from about 354 to 290 million years ago during the late Paleozoic Era. The term "Carboniferous" comes from England, in reference to the rich deposits of coal that occur there. These deposits of coal occur throughout northern Europe, Asia, and midwestern and eastern North America. The term "Carboniferous" is used throughout the world to describe this period, although this period has been separated into the Mississippian (Lower Carboniferous) and the Pennsylvanian (Upper Carboniferous) in the United States. This system was adopted to distinguish the coal-bearing layers of the Pennsylvanian from the mostly limestone Mississippian, and is a result of differing stratigraphy on the different continents. ---- Carboniferous Forest : The Carboniferous Period is famous for its vast coal swamps, such as the one depicted here. Such swamps produced the coal from which the term "Carboniferous", or "carbon-bearing" comes. ---- In addition to having the ideal conditions for the beginnings of coal, several major biological, geological, and climatic events occurred during this time. One of the greatest evolutionary innovations of the Carboniferous was the amniote egg, which allowed for the further exploitation of the land by certain tetrapods. The amniote egg allowed the ancestors of birds, mammals, and reptiles to reproduce on land by preventing the desiccation of the embryo inside. There was also a trend towards mild temperatures during theCarboniferous, as evidenced by the decrease in lycopods and large insects and an increase in the number of tree ferns. Geologically, the Late Carboniferous collision of Laurussia (present-day Europe and North America) into Godwanaland (present-day Africa and South America) produced the Appalachian mountain belt of eastern North America and the Hercynian Mountains in the United Kingdom. A further collision of Siberia and eastern Europe created the Ural Mountains. The stratigraphy of the Lower Carboniferous can be easilydistinguished from that of the Upper Carboniferous. The environment of the Lower Carboniferous in North America was heavily marine, when seas covered parts of the continents. As a result, most of the mineral found in Lower Carboniferous is limestone, which are composed of the remains of crinoids, lime-encrusted green algae, or calcium carbonate shaped by waves. The North American Upper Carboniferous environment was alternately terrestrialand marine, with the transgression and regression of the seas caused by glaciation. These environmental conditions, with the vast amount of plant material provided by the extensive coal forests, allowed for the production of coal. Plant material did not decay when the seas covered them and pressure and heat eventually built up over the millions of years to transform the plant material to coal. ---- ---- Subdivisions of theCarboniferous: The chart at left shows the major subdivisions of the Carboniferous Period.The Lower Carboniferous of Europe corresponds roughly to the Mississippian of North America, and the Middle and Upper Carboniferous are roughly equivalent to the Pennsylvanian. This chart is mapped, to allow you to travel back to the Devonian orforward to the Permian. The Carboniferous Period is part of thePaleozoic Era. ----


What materials were used at Stonehenge?

The outcrop sedimentary rocks at Stonehenge are the Late Cretaceous, Santonian Age, calcium carbonates. The outcrop sedimentary rocks comprise the first construction material used by the Stonehenge builders. This material is approximately 85 million years old. These rocks are locally called the Seaford Chalk Formation (Stonehenge White Chalk). The oldest limestone sedimentary rocks at Stonehenge are the Mississippian Period (Early Carboniferous), Arundian Age, calcium carbonates. The Mississippian Period limestone sedimentary rocks comprise the first (1st) foreign construction material used by the Stonehenge builders. This material is approximately 340 million years old. These rocks are locally called the Birnbeck Limestone Formation (Stonehenge Whitestones). The volcanic rocks (oldest geologically) at Stonehenge are the Ordovician Period intrusive igneous diabases (dolerites), and extrusive igneous felsites (rhyolites) and tuffs (basic). The Ordovician Period igneous rocks comprise the second (2nd) foreign construction material used by the Stonehenge builders. This material is approximately 470 million years old. These rocks are locally called the Ordovician Volcanics (Stonehenge Bluestones). The oldest sandstone sedimentary rocks at Stonehenge are the Silurian and Devonian Period micaceous sandstones. The Silurian and Devonian Period sedimentary sandstone rocks comprise the third (3rd) foreign construction material used by the Stonehenge builders. This material is approximately 417 million years old. These rocks are locally called the Old Red Sandstone Formation (Stonehenge Coshestons). The youngest sandstone sedimentary rocks at Stonehenge are the Oligocene and Miocene Period silicates. The Oligocene and Miocene Period sandstone sedimentary rocks comprise the fourth (4th) foreign construction material used by the Stonehenge builders. This material is approximately 24 million years old. These rocks are locally called the Reading Formation (Stonehenge Sarsens). http://www.bgs.ac.uk


What time period is 1 million years ago?

98 million years ago was in the Cretaceous period.


What was the period called when dinosaurs roamed the earth?

The late Jurassic Period, some 165 million years ago.


What time period is the age of mammals?

the last 65 million years is called the age of mammals


What were the dominant organisms during the carboniferous?

Arthropods were at their largest during this period due to high oxygen levels. It´s sometimes called the Age of the Insects. Ferns and horsetails grew to the size and build of trees, too, and fossils of them are common.


What terrible period of time in which six million Jews were killed?

The so-called Holocaust period in Nazi Germany, between 1935 and 1945.


What are three different ways you can you use a period?

As: 1. a period (that in sentence formation is sometimes called a 'full stop') 2. a decimal point 3. in formation of ellipsis (in most word-processing software, this symbol is typeset as three dots in a row of slightly different size and spacing from the standard period built in for most keyboards)


Where do fosil fules come from?

There are three major forms of fossil fuels: coal, oil and natural gas. All three were formed many hundreds of millions of years ago before the time of the dinosaurs - hence the name fossil fuels. The age they were formed is called the Carboniferous Period. It was part of the Paleozoic Era. "Carboniferous" gets its name from carbon, the basic element in coal and other fossil fuels