Approximately one billion years (Gyr) in the future, as the Sun brightens, Earth’s carbonate-silicate cycle is expected to drive CO2 below the minimum level required by vascular land plants, eliminating […]
biogeochemical
Posted inAtmospheres, Climate, Weather, Biochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Fossils & Paleontology, Habitable Zones, Microbiology & Virology, Status Report, Water/Hycean Worlds & Oceanography
New Estimates of Nitrogen Fixation on Early Earth
Fixed nitrogen species generated by the early Earth’s atmosphere are thought to be critical to the emergence of life and the sustenance of early metabolisms.
Posted inAstrogeology, Atmospheres, Climate, Weather, Exoplanets, -moons, -comets, Habitable Zones, Lava / magma ocean / Volcanic Worlds, Status Report
Role of Magma Oceans in Controlling Carbon and Oxygen of Sub-Neptune atmospheres
Most exoplanets with a few Earth radii are more inflated than bare-rock planets with the same mass, indicating a substantial volatile amount. Neither the origin of the volatiles nor the […]
Posted inAtmospheres, Climate, Weather, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Habitable Zones, Icy Worlds, Press Release, Water/Hycean Worlds & Oceanography
Scottish And Irish Rocks Confirmed As Being A Rare Record Of Snowball Earth
The study, published in the Journal of the Geological Society of London, found that the Port Askaig Formation, composed of layers of rock up to 1.1km thick, was likely laid […]
Posted inBiogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Fossils & Paleontology, Habitable Zones, Press Release, Water/Hycean Worlds & Oceanography
Seawater Barium and Sulfide Removal Improved Marine Habitability for the Cambrian Explosion of Early Animals
This study is led by Dr. Wei Wei, PhD student Lin-Hui Dong, and Prof. Fang Huang at the University of Science and Technology of China. Excess barium contents (Baexcess) and […]
Posted inAtmospheres, Climate, Weather, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Gaia - Planetary Perspectives, Genomics, Proteomics, Bioinformatics, Habitable Zones, Microbiology & Virology, Press Release
Microbial Viruses Act As Secret Drivers Of Planetary Climate Change
In a new study, scientists have discovered that viruses that infect microbes contribute to climate change by playing a key role in cycling methane, a potent greenhouse gas, through the […]
Posted inAtmospheres, Climate, Weather, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Habitable Zones, Mars, Status Report
Constraints On The Size and Composition Of The Ancient Martian Atmosphere From Coupled CO2-N2-Ar Isotopic Evolution Models
Present-day Mars is cold and dry, but mineralogical and morphological evidence shows that liquid-water existed on the surface of ancient Mars.
Posted inAstrogeology, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Exoplanets, -moons, -comets, Press Release
Oxygen Controls On Magmatism In Rocky Exoplanets
Refractory oxygen bound to cations is a key component of the interior of rocky exoplanets. Its abundance controls planetary properties including metallic core fraction, core composition, and mantle and crust […]