Extreme variability in atmospheric oxygen levels in the late Precambrian

Krause, Alexander J. ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9771-8101, Mills, Benjamin J. W., Merdith, Andrew S., Lenton, Timothy M. and Poulton, Simon W. 2022. Extreme variability in atmospheric oxygen levels in the late Precambrian. Science Advances 8 (41) , eabm8191. 10.1126/sciadv.abm8191

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Abstract

Mapping the history of atmospheric O2 during the late Precambrian is vital for evaluating potential links to animal evolution. Ancient O2 levels are often inferred from geochemical analyses of marine sediments, leading to the assumption that the Earth experienced a stepwise increase in atmospheric O2 during the Neoproterozoic. However, the nature of this hypothesized oxygenation event remains unknown, with suggestions of a more dynamic O2 history in the oceans and major uncertainty over any direct connection between the marine realm and atmospheric O2. Here, we present a continuous quantitative reconstruction of atmospheric O2 over the past 1.5 billion years using an isotope mass balance approach that combines bulk geochemistry and tectonic recycling rate calculations. We predict that atmospheric O2 levels during the Neoproterozoic oscillated between ~1 and ~50% of the present atmospheric level. We conclude that there was no simple unidirectional rise in atmospheric O2 during the Neoproterozoic, and the first animals evolved against a backdrop of extreme O2 variability.

Item Type:	Article
Date Type:	Publication
Status:	Published
Schools:	Earth and Environmental Sciences
Publisher:	American Association for the Advancement of Science
ISSN:	2375-2548
Date of Acceptance:	25 August 2022
Last Modified:	18 Sep 2024 11:01
URI:	https://orca.cardiff.ac.uk/id/eprint/171983

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