| Albian | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 113.2 ± 0.3 – 100.5 ± 0.1Ma | |||||||||
| Chronology | |||||||||
| |||||||||
| Etymology | |||||||||
| Name formality | Formal | ||||||||
| Usage information | |||||||||
| Celestial body | Earth | ||||||||
| Regional usage | Global (ICS) | ||||||||
| Time scale(s) used | ICS Time Scale | ||||||||
| Definition | |||||||||
| Chronological unit | Age | ||||||||
| Stratigraphic unit | Stage | ||||||||
| Time span formality | Formal | ||||||||
| Lower boundary definition | FAD of thePlanktonic ForaminiferMicrohedbergella renilaevis | ||||||||
| Lower boundary GSSP | Col de Pré-Guittard section,Arnayon,Drôme,France 44°30′28″N5°17′50″E / 44.507900°N 5.297300°E /44.507900; 5.297300[2] | ||||||||
| Lower GSSP ratified | April 2016[3] | ||||||||
| Upper boundary definition | FAD of the Planktonic ForaminiferRotalipora globotruncanoides | ||||||||
| Upper boundary GSSP | Mont Risoux,Hautes-Alpes,France 44°23′33″N5°30′43″E / 44.3925°N 5.5119°E /44.3925; 5.5119 | ||||||||
| Upper GSSP ratified | 2002[4] | ||||||||
TheAlbian is both anage of thegeologic timescale and astage in thestratigraphic column. It is the youngest or uppermost subdivision of theEarly/Lower CretaceousEpoch/Series. Its approximate time range is 113.2 ± 0.3Ma to 100.5 ± 0.1 Ma (million years ago). The Albian is preceded by theAptian and followed by theCenomanian.[5]
The Albian Stage was first proposed in 1842 byAlcide d'Orbigny. It was named after Alba, the Latin name forRiver Aube inFrance.
AGlobal Boundary Stratotype Section and Point (GSSP), ratified by theIUGS in 2016, defines the base of the Albian as the first occurrence of the planktonicforaminiferanMicrohedbergella renilaevis at the Col de Pré-Guittard section,Arnayon, Drôme, France.[6]
The top of the Albian Stage (the base of the Cenomanian Stage and Upper Cretaceous Series) is defined as the place where theforam speciesRotalipora globotruncanoides first appears in the stratigraphic column.[7]
The Albian is sometimes subdivided in Early/Lower, Middle and Late/Upper subages or substages. In western Europe, especially in theUnited Kingdom, a subdivision in two substages (Vraconian andGaultian) is more often[when?] used[by whom?].
Examples of Albian sedimentary rock are: thephosphorite beds of theArgonne andBray areas in France; theFlammenmergel of northernGermany; thelignites ofUtrillas inSpain; the UpperNubian Sandstones, and theFredericksburg beds ofNorth America.[8]
Over the course of the Albian, the area in what is now the Liupanshan Basin,China became progressively hotter and drier.[9]
One or more of the preceding sentences incorporates text from a publication now in thepublic domain: Howe, John Allen (1911). "Albian". InChisholm, Hugh (ed.).Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 1 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 505..jpg)
