earth science

Hauterivian

Hauterivian is a earth science topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Hauterivian rather than just read about it. In short: The Hauterivian is, in the geologic timescale, an age in the Early Cretaceous Epoch or a stage in the Lower Cretaceous Series. It spans the time between 132.6 ± 0.6 Ma and 125.77 (million years ago).

Key takeaways

Hauterivian belongs to earth science; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Hauterivian to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Hauterivian from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

The Hauterivian is, in the geologic timescale, an age in the Early Cretaceous Epoch or a stage in the Lower Cretaceous Series. It spans the time between 132.6 ± 0.6 Ma and 125.77 (million years ago). The Hauterivian is preceded by the Valanginian and succeeded by the Barremian.

Stratigraphic definitions The Hauterivian was introduced in scientific literature by Swiss geologist Eugène Renevier in 1873. It is named after the Swiss town of Hauterive at the shore of Lake Neuchâtel. The base of the Hauterivian is defined as the place in the stratigraphic column where the ammonite genus Acanthodiscus first appears. A reference profile for the base (a GSSP) was officially ratified by the International Union of Geological Sciences in December of 2019, and is placed in La Charce, France. The top of the Hauterivian (the base of the Barremian) is at the first appearance of ammonite species Spitidiscus hugii. In the ammonite biostratigraphy of the Tethys domain, the Hauterivian contains seven ammonite biozones:

zone of Pseudothurmannia ohmi zone of Balearites balearis zone of Plesiospitidiscus ligatus zone of Subsaynella sayni zone of Lyticoceras nodosoplicatus zone of Crioceratites loryi zone of Acanthodiscus radiatus

Climate Some palaeoclimatological studies indicate that a brief ice age, known as the Hauterivian cold snap, occurred during this age. The Hauterivian cold snap appears to be associated with permafrost at high elevations and large ice sheets that potentially stretched as far south as the modern Iberian Peninsula, based on the existence of Hauterivian ice-rafted dropstones in Iberia. Cold conditions are also known to have existed in the Southern Hemisphere during the same time period, based on records from Australia. Similar cold periods with associated glaciations are also known from the earlier Valanginian and the later Aptian & early Albian periods, all contrasting with the typical image of the Cretaceous as a greenhouse period.

References

Notes

Literature Gradstein, F.M.; Ogg, J.G. & Smith, A.G.; (2004): A Geologic Time Scale 2004, Cambridge University Press.

External links GeoWhen Database - Hauterivian Mid-Cretaceous timescale, at the website of the subcommission for stratigraphic information of the ICS Stratigraphic chart of the Lower Cretaceous, at the website of Norges Network of offshore records of geology and stratigraphy Hauterivian Microfossils: 25+ images of Foraminifera

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Hauterivian

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Hauterivian claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In earth science, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Hauterivian before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Hauterivian ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Hauterivian

In research: Hauterivian appears in earth science research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Hauterivian in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Hauterivian is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Cretaceous geochronology, Early Cretaceous, Geological ages, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Hauterivian outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Hauterivian in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Hauterivian means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Hauterivian out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Hauterivian in simple terms?

Why does Hauterivian matter?

Because it connects several earth science ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Hauterivian?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Hauterivian.