Book excerpt: A Concise Geologic Time Scale: 2016 presents a summary of Earth's history over the past 4.5 billion years, as well as a brief overview of contemporaneous events on the Moon, Mars, and Venus. The authors have been at the forefront of chronostratigraphic research and initiatives to create an international geologic time scale for many years, and the charts in this book present the most up-to-date international standard, as ratified by the International Commission on Stratigraphy and the International Union of Geological Sciences. This book is an essential reference for all geoscientists, including researchers, students, and petroleum and mining professionals. The presentation is non-technical and illustrated with numerous colour charts, maps and photographs. - Presents a summary of Earth's history over the past 4.5 billion years - Includes a brief overview of contemporaneous events on the Moon, Mars, and Venus - Includes full-color figures including charts, stratigraphic profiles, and photographs to enhance understanding of each geologic period - Correlates regional geologic stages to the standard definitions approved by the International Commission on Stratigraphy - Offers an explanation of the methods used to create the time scale - 2017 PROSE Award Finalist in Earth Science