The successor of the standard GTS2004 has been published in 2012 in two multi-authored volumes by Elsevier. This new full colour Geological Time Scale is the chronostratigraphy reference source for the coming years. The first volume (435 p) has 18 chapters, dealing with the basics of the current stratigraphic methodologies, the Planetary Time Scale and the Precambrian chronostratigraphy.