The term Jurassic is used in the field of geology to refer to the period that began 208 million years ago and lasted until 144 million years ago . As an adjective it is written with a lower case letter ( Jurassic ), while if it is used as a noun it must be written with an initial capital letter ( Jurassic ).
It is also important to know that this term in question is a neologism that was coined in the 19th century, specifically in 1829, by a French zoologist, botanist and mineralist known as Alexander Brongniart (1770 - 1847). It has gone down in history not only for having given shape to that word but also for having developed the fossil markers used to date the different strata and even for having shaped a new classification of reptiles.
The Jurassic is the second period of the Mesozoic era . This geological era , which began 230 million years ago and ended 65 million years ago, began with the Triassic period , continued with the Jurassic period , and ended with the Cretaceous period .
In the Jurassic, birds and mammals appeared. The division of Pangea also occurred, the supercontinent whose fracture led to the emergence of Gondwana and Laurasia , two continental blocks separated by the Tethys Ocean.
One of the main characteristics of the Jurassic is the rise and diversification of dinosaurs . During this period many species increased in size and predators developed new hunting methodologies.
There are numerous dinosaurs that existed in the Jurassic, although among the most significant we can highlight the Atlasaurus montanus, the Brontosaurus, the Diplodocus, the Gryponyx or the Laosaurus gracilis, for example.
Among the various geological periods, the Jurassic is the best known at a popular level, at least by name, thanks to a novel and its subsequent film adaptation that gave rise to a franchise: "Jurassic Park" (or, in English, "Jurassic Park» ). The book was written by Michael Crichton and published in 1990 , while the first film was directed by Steven Spielberg and was released in 1993 . Thanks to these works , there was a craze for dinosaurs in the ' 90s, which began to arouse enormous interest in children and adults.
This film won three Oscars (Best Sound, Best Sound Editing and Best Visual Effects), although in total it won twenty-four awards internationally. A success that has led to the creation of a saga with these other productions:
-"The Lost World: Jurassic Park II", which premiered in 1997 also under the direction of Steven Spielberg.
-«Jurassic Park III». This hit the big screen in 2001 and was directed by Joe Johnston.
-"Jurassic World", which was presented in theaters in 2015. It is the fourth installment of the saga and was directed by Colin Trevorrow. It developed its plot 22 years after what happened in the first film of this series.
-«Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom». For the moment, this is the last feature film in the saga. It was released in 2018 and is directed by the Spanish JA Bayona.