. | . |
Moss boosted Earth's oxygen 400 million yrs ago: study by Staff Writers Miami (AFP) Aug 15, 2016 Scientists have long wondered what gave Earth enough oxygen to support the rise of animals and people, and researchers said Monday they believe it all started with moss. The report in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences said mossy ground cover began to proliferate about 470 million years ago, giving our planet its first stable source of oxygen and allowing intelligent life to thrive. "It's exciting to think that without the evolution of the humble moss, none of us would be here today," said co-author Tim Lenton, a professor at the University of Exeter. "Our research suggests that the earliest land plants were surprisingly productive and caused a major rise in the oxygen content of the Earth's atmosphere." Oxygen first appeared in Earth's atmosphere about 2.4 billion years ago, in what was known as the Great Oxidation Event. But oxygen did not reach its current levels until some 400 million years ago. Some scientists have theorized that forests gave rise to increasing oxygen levels, but the PNAS study disagrees with that notion. Using computer simulations as a way of peering into the past, researchers estimated that lichen and moss could have generated about 30 percent of Earth's oxygen by about 445 million years ago. As moss proliferated, it increased the amount of organic carbon in sedimentary rocks, driving up oxygen levels in the air. This oxygen boost "allowed large, mobile, intelligent animal life, including humans, to evolve," said the study.
Related Links Explore The Early Earth at TerraDaily.com
|
|
The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2024 - Space Media Network. All websites are published in Australia and are solely subject to Australian law and governed by Fair Use principals for news reporting and research purposes. AFP, UPI and IANS news wire stories are copyright Agence France-Presse, United Press International and Indo-Asia News Service. ESA news reports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additional copyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. All articles labeled "by Staff Writers" include reports supplied to Space Media Network by industry news wires, PR agencies, corporate press officers and the like. Such articles are individually curated and edited by Space Media Network staff on the basis of the report's information value to our industry and professional readership. Advertising does not imply endorsement, agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by Space Media Network on any Web page published or hosted by Space Media Network. General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) Statement Our advertisers use various cookies and the like to deliver the best ad banner available at one time. All network advertising suppliers have GDPR policies (Legitimate Interest) that conform with EU regulations for data collection. By using our websites you consent to cookie based advertising. If you do not agree with this then you must stop using the websites from May 25, 2018. Privacy Statement. Additional information can be found here at About Us. |