Jon & Jordan talk to the Naked Scientists

Around 2.3 billion years ago, the Earth experienced a massive change in the composition of its atmosphere: oxygen became an abundant element. This was partly owing to the evolution of microbes called cyanobacteria with the capability to photosynthesise, capturing the sun's energy to make food and releasing oxygen in the process. But if we try to look before this great oxidation event, it is much less clear how much oxygen was around, where it came from, and what was using it. This week though, researchers from Newcastle University revealed how crushing rocks, water and heat could be a recipe for releasing oxygen on the early Earth, which in turn could have affected how life evolved and flourished. Julia Ravey spoke to Jon Telling and Jordan Stone (destined to be a geologist with that name!) about the findings, with Jon explaining how oxygen may have been generated before photosynthesis…

https://www.thenakedscientists.com/articles/interviews/ancient-oxygen-source-crushed-rocks

Last modified: Thu, 18 Aug 2022 08:57:38 BST