Despite being the most widely used unit infield mapping and having the greatest number of active researchers, the interval known as Quaternary is unique among the chronostratigraphic subdivisions of the Geological Tim...Despite being the most widely used unit infield mapping and having the greatest number of active researchers, the interval known as Quaternary is unique among the chronostratigraphic subdivisions of the Geological Time Scale (GTS) in having the most controversial definition and rank. After more than 100 years of debate, the base of the Quaternary is now widely recognized at -2.6 Ma, marking a dramatic and so-far irreversible shift to the ice-age-dominated world of oscillating glacial advances over the northern continents.展开更多
文摘Despite being the most widely used unit infield mapping and having the greatest number of active researchers, the interval known as Quaternary is unique among the chronostratigraphic subdivisions of the Geological Time Scale (GTS) in having the most controversial definition and rank. After more than 100 years of debate, the base of the Quaternary is now widely recognized at -2.6 Ma, marking a dramatic and so-far irreversible shift to the ice-age-dominated world of oscillating glacial advances over the northern continents.