Quaternary system
Quaternary system [CP].A major chronostratigraphic subdivision; the latest of the two PERIODS forming the Cenozoic era (the other is the TERTIARY), itself composed of two epochs, the PLEISTOCENE and the HOLOCENE. These terms can be applied to groups of deposits (geostratigraphic subdivisions) as the Quaternary ‘system’ embracing Pleistocene or Holocene ‘series’. The Quaternary system, beginning about 2.4 million years ago, comprises a number of elements that were once seen as a succession of glacial and INTERGLACIAL episodes. Deep-sea cores and the analysis of deep-ocean sediments now show this view to be overly simplistic.
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