Earliest known life forms

The earliest known life forms on Earth are putative fossilized microorganisms found in hydrothermal vent precipitates.[1] The earliest time that life forms first appeared on Earth is unknown. They may have lived earlier than 3.77 billion years ago, possibly as early as 4.28 billion years ago,[1] not long after the oceans formed 4.41 billion years ago, and not long after the formation of the Earth 4.54 billion years ago.[1][2][3][4] A life form, or lifeform, is an entity or being that is living.[5][6]

Overview

Earth remains the only place in the universe known to harbor life forms.[7][8]

More than 99% of all species of life forms, amounting to over five billion species,[9] that ever lived on Earth are estimated to be extinct.[10][11]

Example of archaea, prokaroytic microbes, first found in extreme environments, such as volcanic hot springs.

Estimates on the number of Earth's current species of life forms range from 10 million to 14 million,[12] of which about 1.2 million have been documented and over 86 percent have not yet been described.[13] In May 2016, scientists reported that 1 trillion species are estimated to be on Earth currently with only one-thousandth of one percent described.[14] The total amount of DNA base pairs on Earth is estimated at 5.0 x 1037 and weighs 50 billion tonnes.[15] In comparison, the total mass of the biosphere has been estimated to be as much as 4 TtC (trillion tons of carbon).[16] In July 2016, scientists reported identifying a set of 355 genes from the Last Universal Common Ancestor (LUCA) of all organisms living on Earth.[17]

Life forms live in every part of the Earth's biosphere, including soil, hot springs, inside rocks at least 19 km (12 mi) deep underground, the deepest parts of the ocean, and at least 64 km (40 mi) high in the atmosphere.[18][19][20] Under certain test conditions, life forms have been observed to thrive in the vacuum of outer space.[21][22] Life forms appear to thrive in the Mariana Trench, the deepest spot in the Earth's oceans.[23][24] Other researchers reported related studies that life forms thrive inside rocks up to 580 m (1,900 ft; 0.36 mi) below the sea floor under 2,590 m (8,500 ft; 1.61 mi) of ocean off the coast of the northwestern United States,[23][25] as well as 2,400 m (7,900 ft; 1.5 mi) beneath the seabed off Japan.[26] In August 2014, scientists confirmed the existence of life forms living 800 m (2,600 ft; 0.50 mi) below the ice of Antarctica.[27][28] According to one researcher, "You can find microbes everywhere — they're extremely adaptable to conditions, and survive wherever they are."[23]

Earliest life forms

Evidence of possibly the oldest forms of life on Earth have been found in hydrothermal vent precipitates.[1][2]

Fossil evidence informs most studies of the origin of life. The age of the Earth is about 4.54 billion years;[29][30][31] the earliest undisputed evidence of life on Earth dates from at least 3.5 billion years ago.[32][33][34]

There is evidence that life began much earlier.

In 2017, fossilized microorganisms, or microfossils, were announced to have been discovered in hydrothermal vent precipitates in the Nuvvuagittuq Belt of Quebec, Canada that may be as old as 4.28 billion years old, the oldest record of life on Earth, suggesting "an almost instantaneous emergence of life" after ocean formation 4.41 billion years ago, and not long after the formation of the Earth 4.54 billion years ago.[1][2][3][4]

Geyserite basin at Chinese Spring, Upper Geyser Basin, Yellowstone.[35][36]

"Remains of life" have been found in 4.1 billion-year-old rocks in Western Australia.[37]

Evidence of biogenic graphite,[38] and possibly stromatolites,[39] was discovered in 3.7 billion-year-old metasedimentary rocks in southwestern Greenland.

In May 2017, evidence of life on land may have been found in 3.48 billion-year-old geyserite which is often found around hot springs and geysers, and other related mineral deposits, uncovered in the Pilbara Craton of Western Australia.[35][36] This complements the November 2013 publication that microbial mat fossils had been found in 3.48 billion-year-old sandstone in Western Australia.[40][41][42]

According to biologist Stephen Blair Hedges, "If life arose relatively quickly on Earth … then it could be common in the universe."[37]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 Dodd, Matthew S.; Papineau, Dominic; Grenne, Tor; Slack, John F.; Rittner, Martin; Pirajno, Franco; O'Neil, Jonathan; Little, Crispin T. S. (1 March 2017). "Evidence for early life in Earth’s oldest hydrothermal vent precipitates". Nature (journal). 543: 60–64. doi:10.1038/nature21377. Retrieved 2 March 2017.
  2. 1 2 3 Zimmer, Carl (1 March 2017). "Scientists Say Canadian Bacteria Fossils May Be Earth’s Oldest". New York Times. Retrieved 2 March 2017.
  3. 1 2 Ghosh, Pallab (1 March 2017). "Earliest evidence of life on Earth 'found". BBC News. Retrieved 2 March 2017.
  4. 1 2 Dunham, Will (1 March 2017). "Canadian bacteria-like fossils called oldest evidence of life". Reuters. Retrieved 1 March 2017.
  5. ↑ "life form". World English Dictionary. Dictionary.com. 2009.
  6. ↑ "life form". Online Oxford Dictionary of English. Oxford University Press. 2005.
  7. ↑ Graham, Robert W. (February 1990). "Extraterrestrial Life in the Universe" (PDF) (NASA Technical Memorandum 102363). Lewis Research Center, Cleveland, Ohio: NASA. Retrieved 2 June 2015.
  8. ↑ Altermann, Wladyslaw (2009). "From Fossils to Astrobiology – A Roadmap to Fata Morgana?" (PDF). In Seckbach, Joseph; Walsh, Maud. From Fossils to Astrobiology: Records of Life on Earth and the Search for Extraterrestrial Biosignatures. Cellular Origin, Life in Extreme Habitats and Astrobiology. 12. Dordrecht, the Netherlands; London: Springer Science+Business Media. p. xvii. ISBN 978-1-4020-8836-0. LCCN 2008933212. Retrieved 5 June 2015.
  9. ↑ Kunin, W.E.; Gaston, Kevin, eds. (31 December 1996). The Biology of Rarity: Causes and consequences of rare—common differences. ISBN 978-0412633805. Retrieved 26 May 2015.
  10. ↑ Stearns, Beverly Peterson; Stearns, S. C.; Stearns, Stephen C. (2000). Watching, from the Edge of Extinction. Yale University Press. p. preface x. ISBN 978-0-300-08469-6. Retrieved 30 May 2017.
  11. ↑ Novacek, Michael J. (8 November 2014). "Prehistory’s Brilliant Future". New York Times. Retrieved 25 December 2014.
  12. ↑ G. Miller; Scott Spoolman (2012). Environmental Science - Biodiversity Is a Crucial Part of the Earth's Natural Capital. Cengage Learning. p. 62. ISBN 1-133-70787-4. Retrieved 27 December 2014.
  13. ↑ Mora, C.; Tittensor, D.P.; Adl, S.; Simpson, A.G.; Worm, B. (23 August 2011). "How many species are there on Earth and in the ocean?". PLOS Biology. 9: e1001127. PMC 3160336 Freely accessible. PMID 21886479. doi:10.1371/journal.pbio.1001127.
  14. ↑ Staff (2 May 2016). "Researchers find that Earth may be home to 1 trillion species". National Science Foundation. Retrieved 6 May 2016.
  15. ↑ Nuwer, Rachel (18 July 2015). "Counting All the DNA on Earth". The New York Times. New York: The New York Times Company. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 18 July 2015.
  16. ↑ "The Biosphere: Diversity of Life". Aspen Global Change Institute. Basalt, CO. Retrieved 19 July 2015.
  17. ↑ Wade, Nicholas (25 July 2016). "Meet Luca, the Ancestor of All Living Things". New York Times. Retrieved 25 July 2016.
  18. ↑ University of Georgia (25 August 1998). "First-Ever Scientific Estimate Of Total Bacteria On Earth Shows Far Greater Numbers Than Ever Known Before". Science Daily. Retrieved 10 November 2014.
  19. ↑ Hadhazy, Adam (12 January 2015). "Life Might Thrive a Dozen Miles Beneath Earth's Surface". Astrobiology Magazine. Retrieved 11 March 2017.
  20. ↑ Fox-Skelly, Jasmin (24 November 2015). "The Strange Beasts That Live In Solid Rock Deep Underground". BBC online. Retrieved 11 March 2017.
  21. ↑ Dose, K.; Bieger-Dose, A.; Dillmann, R.; Gill, M.; Kerz, O.; Klein, A.; Meinert, H.; Nawroth, T.; Risi, S.; Stridde, C. (1995). "ERA-experiment "space biochemistry"". Advances in Space Research. 16 (8): 119–129. PMID 11542696. doi:10.1016/0273-1177(95)00280-R.
  22. ↑ Vaisberg, Horneck G.; Eschweiler, U.; Reitz, G.; Wehner, J.; Willimek, R.; Strauch, K. (1995). "Biological responses to space: results of the experiment "Exobiological Unit" of ERA on EURECA I". Adv Space Res. 16 (8): 105–18. Bibcode:1995AdSpR..16..105V. PMID 11542695. doi:10.1016/0273-1177(95)00279-N.
  23. 1 2 3 Choi, Charles Q. (17 March 2013). "Microbes Thrive in Deepest Spot on Earth". LiveScience. Retrieved 17 March 2013.
  24. ↑ Glud, Ronnie; Wenzhöfer, Frank; Middelboe, Mathias; Oguri, Kazumasa; Turnewitsch, Robert; Canfield, Donald E.; Kitazato, Hiroshi (17 March 2013). "High rates of microbial carbon turnover in sediments in the deepest oceanic trench on Earth". Nature Geoscience. 6 (4): 284–288. Bibcode:2013NatGe...6..284G. doi:10.1038/ngeo1773. Retrieved 17 March 2013.
  25. ↑ Oskin, Becky (14 March 2013). "Intraterrestrials: Life Thrives in Ocean Floor". LiveScience. Retrieved 17 March 2013.
  26. ↑ Morelle, Rebecca (15 December 2014). "Microbes discovered by deepest marine drill analysed". BBC News. Retrieved 15 December 2014.
  27. ↑ Fox, Douglas (20 August 2014). "Lakes under the ice: Antarctica's secret garden". Nature. 512 (7514): 244–246. Bibcode:2014Natur.512..244F. doi:10.1038/512244a. Retrieved 21 August 2014.
  28. ↑ Mack, Eric (20 August 2014). "Life Confirmed Under Antarctic Ice; Is Space Next?". Forbes. Retrieved 21 August 2014.
  29. ↑ "Age of the Earth". United States Geological Survey. 9 July 2007. Retrieved 2006-01-10.
  30. ↑ Dalrymple, G. Brent (2001). "The age of the Earth in the twentieth century: a problem (mostly) solved". Special Publications, Geological Society of London. 190 (1): 205–221. Bibcode:2001GSLSP.190..205D. doi:10.1144/GSL.SP.2001.190.01.14.
  31. ↑ Manhesa, Gérard; Allègre, Claude J.; Dupréa, Bernard; Hamelin, Bruno (May 1980). "Lead isotope study of basic-ultrabasic layered complexes: Speculations about the age of the earth and primitive mantle characteristics". Earth and Planetary Science Letters. Amsterdam, the Netherlands: Elsevier. 47 (3): 370–382. Bibcode:1980E&PSL..47..370M. ISSN 0012-821X. doi:10.1016/0012-821X(80)90024-2.
  32. ↑ Schopf, J. William; Kudryavtsev, Anatoliy B.; Czaja, Andrew D.; Tripathi, Abhishek B. (5 October 2007). "Evidence of Archean life: Stromatolites and microfossils". Precambrian Research. Amsterdam, the Netherlands: Elsevier. 158 (3–4): 141–155. ISSN 0301-9268. doi:10.1016/j.precamres.2007.04.009.
  33. ↑ Schopf, J. William (29 June 2006). "Fossil evidence of Archaean life". Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B. London: Royal Society. 361 (1470): 869–885. ISSN 0962-8436. PMC 1578735 Freely accessible. PMID 16754604. doi:10.1098/rstb.2006.1834.
  34. ↑ Raven, Peter H.; Johnson, George B. (2002). Biology (6th ed.). Boston, MA: McGraw-Hill. p. 68. ISBN 0-07-112261-3. LCCN 2001030052. OCLC 45806501.
  35. 1 2 Staff (9 May 2017). "Oldest evidence of life on land found in 3.48-billion-year-old Australian rocks". Phys.org. Retrieved 13 May 2017.
  36. 1 2 Djokic, Tara; Van Kranendonk, Martin J.; Campbell, Kathleen A.; Walter, Malcolm R.; Ward, Colin R. (9 May 2017). "Earliest signs of life on land preserved in ca. 3.5 Ga hot spring deposits". Nature Communications. doi:10.1038/ncomms15263. Retrieved 13 May 2017.
  37. 1 2 Borenstein, Seth (19 October 2015). "Hints of life on what was thought to be desolate early Earth". Excite. Yonkers, NY: Mindspark Interactive Network. Associated Press. Retrieved 20 October 2015.
  38. ↑ Ohtomo, Yoko; Kakegawa, Takeshi; Ishida, Akizumi; et al. (January 2014). "Evidence for biogenic graphite in early Archaean Isua metasedimentary rocks". Nature Geoscience. London: Nature Publishing Group. 7 (1): 25–28. Bibcode:2014NatGe...7...25O. ISSN 1752-0894. doi:10.1038/ngeo2025.
  39. ↑ Wade, Nicholas (31 August 2016). "World's Oldest Fossils Found in Greenland". New York Times. Retrieved 31 August 2016.
  40. ↑ Borenstein, Seth (13 November 2013). "Oldest fossil found: Meet your microbial mom". Excite. Yonkers, NY: Mindspark Interactive Network. Associated Press. Retrieved 2 June 2015.
  41. ↑ Pearlman, Jonathan (13 November 2013). "'Oldest signs of life on Earth found'". The Daily Telegraph. London: Telegraph Media Group. Retrieved 2014-12-15.
  42. ↑ Noffke, Nora; Christian, Daniel; Wacey, David; Hazen, Robert M. (16 November 2013). "Microbially Induced Sedimentary Structures Recording an Ancient Ecosystem in the ca. 3.48 Billion-Year-Old Dresser Formation, Pilbara, Western Australia". Astrobiology. New Rochelle, NY: Mary Ann Liebert, Inc. 13 (12): 1103–1124. Bibcode:2013AsBio..13.1103N. ISSN 1531-1074. PMC 3870916 Freely accessible. PMID 24205812. doi:10.1089/ast.2013.1030.
  43. ↑ Porada H.; Ghergut J.; Bouougri El H. (2008). "Kinneyia-Type Wrinkle Structures—Critical Review And Model Of Formation.". PALAIOS. 23 (2): 65–77. doi:10.2110/palo.2006.p06-095r.
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