Neoarchaean

High school (ages 12+)
History & Culture

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Date:

Step 1 · Read the article

Open the article and read it at the level above. Then answer the questions below in your own words.

https://smallwhale.org/articles/neoarchaean

Write what each word means, using the article.

Do not copy the article. Write two things you learned, the way you would explain them to a friend.

Answers below are taken from the article’s stored facts, so they match what the student read.

1. Which continent is Neoarchaean in?Formation and stabilization of continental cratons
2. What is the geological period?Neoarchaean Eon
3. What is the key biological process?Evolution and widespread establishment of oxygenic photosynthesis
4. What was the Neoarchaean Eon?The Neoarchaean Eon was a time about 2.8 to 2.5 billion years ago when Earth was very young and new life forms appeared.
5. Why was oxygenic photosynthesis important during the Neoarchaean?Oxygenic photosynthesis made oxygen, which changed the atmosphere and oceans and allowed more complex life to develop.

Plate Tectonics: The theory that Earth's outer shell is divided into plates that glide over the mantle.
Oxygenic Photosynthesis: The biological process that converts light energy into chemical energy, releasing oxygen as a byproduct.
Craton: An ancient, stable block of continental lithosphere, forming the core of a continent.