Fishermen setting out for their daily work along the shores of Lake Victoria in Uganda
c. 400,000 BCE: Lake Victoria – The Making of Africa’s Largest Freshwater Lake

Lake Victoria, formed in an East African rift valley, is the largest tropical and the second-largest freshwater lake globally. Created by rifting processes, it has experienced cycles of drying and refilling, now hosting a diverse [...]

Sand dunes and dry mountains in Death Valley National Park, showcasing the valley's unique geological and climatic features
c. 2 Million BCE: Death Valley – A Geological Marvel and Extreme Environment

Death Valley, formed by tectonic forces in the Basin and Range region, is North America's lowest point and one of the driest and hottest places globally, known for its unique landscape of eroding sediments and [...]

Salt-encrusted rocks along the shore of the slowly evaporating Dead Sea
c. 3 Million BCE: The Dead Sea – Earth’s Lowest and Saltiest Lake

The Dead Sea, situated in a rift valley created by plate interactions, is the lowest elevation lake on Earth. Hypersaline and with a history shaped by cycles of uplift and subsidence, it has minimal biodiversity [...]

Typical Stone Age tools depicted in a late-nineteenth-century German engraving
c. 3.4 Million BCE to 3300 BCE: The Stone Age – A Pivotal Era in Human Prehistory

The Stone Age, beginning about 3.4 million years ago, represents the earliest phase of human technological and societal development, characterized by the use of stone, bone, and natural materials in tool-making, predominantly in savanna environments

Main image: A blue-footed booby, a native bird of the Galápagos Islands. Inset: A true-color image of the Galápagos Islands from space, taken in 2002 by NASA's Terra satellite
c. 5 Million BCE: The Galápagos Islands – A Hotspot of Biodiversity and Geology

The Galápagos Islands, formed by the Galápagos hotspot, are a unique geological and ecological region. Their location near divergent plate boundaries has led to significant volcanic activity, creating an isolated environment that influenced Charles Darwin's [...]

A view from orbit of the Caspian Sea, captured by the MODIS sensor on NASA's Terra satellite in 2003
c. 5.5 Million BCE: The Caspian and Black Seas – Remnants of Ancient Geography

The Caspian and Black Seas, formed from the closure of the Tethys Sea due to the collision of the African and Eurasian plates, are the largest inland lakes with unique characteristics, including salinity and anoxic [...]

An artistic rendering based on geophysical data, depicting the Mediterranean basin just before its separation from the Atlantic Ocean due to the collision between Africa and Southern Europe
c. 6.5 Million BCE: The Evolution of the Mediterranean Sea

The Mediterranean Sea formed from the closure of the Tethys Sea due to the collision of the African and Eurasian plates. This process led to significant volcanic activity and mountain building, followed by a drying [...]

The view from Yavapai Point over the Grand Canyon showcases nearly 2 billion years of Earth’s geologic history, available for detailed study
c. 6.5 Million BCE: The Grand Canyon – A Geological Masterpiece

The Grand Canyon, one of Earth’s most remarkable geological formations, showcases the powerful erosive force of liquid water over time. It is a prime example of how rivers and streams can shape even the toughest [...]

Spectacular sand dunes in the Sahara Desert, the largest non-polar desert in the world
c. 7 Million BCE: The Sahara Desert – Earth’s Largest Hot Desert

The Sahara, Earth's largest non-polar desert, is characterized by extreme temperatures and low rainfall, formed due to the shifting of continental plates and the closing of the Tethys Sea, resulting in a landscape predominantly shaped [...]

Bonobos, a species of hominids closely related to chimpanzees, in their natural habitat in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Africa
c. 10 Million BCE: The Evolutionary Journey of Hominids

Hominids, encompassing great apes and humans, trace their origins back to about 10 million years ago. Adaptations to changing environments during the Miocene led to diverse lifestyles. Genetic evidence suggests the divergence of orangutans, gorillas, [...]