Neoarchean

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Neoarchean era

(millions of years ago)

<timeline> ImageSize = width:175 height:355 PlotArea = left:40 right:5 bottom:135 top:45 AlignBars = justify

Period = from:2500 till:2900 TimeAxis = orientation:vertical ScaleMajor = unit:year increment:100 start:2500 ScaleMinor = unit:year increment:25 start:2500

Colors =

 id:eon  value:rgb(1,0.7,1)  legend:Archaean_eon  # light purple
 id:era  value:rgb(1,1,0.7)  legend:Neoarchean_era   # light yellow
 id:period  value:rgb(1,0.7,0.7)  legend:Period  # light red
 id:black  value:black

Legend = left:15 top:60

BarData =

 bar:eon
 bar:era
 bar:period

PlotData=

 width:80 align:center textcolor:black mark:(line,black)

 bar:eon color:eon

 from:start  till:end  width:100  mark:none
 at:2850  mark:none  text:Archaean~(2500-3800)

 bar:era color:era

 from:2500  till:2800  text:Neoarchean~(2500-2800)

 bar:period color:period

TextData =

 tabs:(25-left)

 pos:(15,350)
 text:"Preceded by:"
 text:^Mesoarchean era

 pos:(15,125)
 text:"Followed by:"
 text:^Proterozoic eon,
 text:^Paleoproterozoic era
 text:^and Siderian period

</timeline> (expand)

The Neoarchean (IPA: /ˌniːəʊɑːˈkiːən/, also spelled Neoarchaean) is a geologic era within the Archaean. It spans the period of time 2800 Ma to 2500 Ma (million years ago)—the period being defined chronometrically and not referenced to a specific level in a rock section on Earth. Oxygenic photosynthesis first evolved in this era and was accountable for the oxygen catastrophe which was to happen later in the paleo proterozoic 2.4 bya from a poisonous buildup of oxygen in the atmosphere, produced by these oxygen producing photoautotrophs, which evolved earlier in the neoarchean.