All articles tagged with #great oxygenation event
Researchers study iron-rich hot springs in Japan to understand how ancient microorganisms survived the Great Oxygenation Event 2.3 billion years ago, revealing insights into early microbial ecosystems and potential implications for finding life on other planets.
The Great Oxygenation Event, occurring around 2 billion years ago, nearly ended life on Earth by causing a catastrophic ice age due to the introduction of oxygen into the atmosphere. This event, caused by cyanobacteria producing oxygen as a waste product, led to the destruction of the early methane-rich atmosphere, triggering a global cooling that resulted in a Snowball Earth scenario lasting for approximately 300 million years. Despite the near-extinction of life, the cyanobacteria and other organisms evolved and eventually thrived, leading to the rise of complex life forms and paving the way for the diversity of life on Earth today.