Atmospheric carbon dioxide concentrations before 2.2 billion years ago

Rye, Rob; Kuo, Phillip H.; Holland, Heinrich D.

doi:10.1038/378603a0

Cited by 431Paleontology and Stratigraphy of FossilsGeology and Paleoclimatology ResearchGeological and Geochemical Analysis

Atmospheric carbon dioxide concentrations before 2.2 billion years ago

Rye, Rob, Kuo, Phillip H., Holland, Heinrich D.·1995·Nature

DOI 10.1038/378603a0

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Abstract

The composition of the Earth's early atmosphere is a subject of continuing debate. In particular, it has been suggested that elevated concentrations of atmospheric carbon dioxide would have been necessary to maintain normal surface temperatures in the face of lower solar luminosity in early Earth history. Fossil weathering profiles, known as palaeosols, have provided semi-quantitative constraints on atmospheric oxygen partial pressure (pO2) before 2.2 Gyr ago. Here we use the same well studied palaeosols to constrain atmospheric pCO2 between 2.75 and 2.2 Gyr ago. The observation that iron lost from the tops of these profiles was reprecipitated lower down as iron silicate minerals, rather than as iron carbonate, indicates that atmospheric pCO2 must have been less than 10(-1.4) atm--about 100 times today's level of 360 p.p.m., and at least five times lower than that required in one-dimensional climate models to compensate for lower solar luminosity at 2.75 Gyr. Our results suggest that either the Earth's early climate was much more sensitive to increases in pCO2 than has been thought, or that one or more greenhouse gases other than CO2 contributed significantly to the atmosphere's radiative balance during the late Archaean and early Proterozoic eons.

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Geochemical measurements from the late Archean suggest that pCO2 was likely significantly higher than in the modern atmosphere, though significant uncertainty exists and no measurements for the early Archean or Hadean are available.
“Geochemical measurements extend back to the late Archean and suggest that the CO 2 partial pressure (pCO 2 ) was likely significantly higher than in the modern atmosphere (Rye et al. 1995; Hessler et al. 2004; Sheldon 2006; Driese et al. 2011; Kanzaki and Murakami 2015) though significant uncertainty exists and no measurements for the early Archean or the Hadean are available”
From The young Sun's XUV-activity as a constraint for lower CO2-limits in the Earth's Archean atmosphere (2021) · cites this paper as Rye et al. 1995

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Authors: Rye, R., Kuo, P. H., & Holland, H. D.
Affiliations: Harvard University (US)
Venue: Nature
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Published: 1995-12
Volume: 378
Issue: 6557
Pages: 603-605
ISSN: 0028-0836 (ISSN-L)
1476-4687
DOI: 10.1038/378603a0
OpenAlex: W2070887411
Cited by: 431
References: 25
Citations by year: 2026: 8 · 2025: 8 · 2024: 3 · 2023: 8 · 2022: 8 · 2021: 8 · 2020: 9 · 2019: 13 · 2018: 33 · 2017: 13 · 2016: 6 · 2015: 8 · 2014: 11 · 2013: 22 · 2012: 13
FWCI: 13.01
Type: journal article
Language: en
Open access: closed
Licence: www.springer.com/tdm (tdm)
Locations: Nature (publishedVersion)
PubMed (publishedVersion)
Topics: Physical Sciences › Earth and Planetary Sciences › Paleontology › Paleontology and Stratigraphy of Fossils
Physical Sciences › Earth and Planetary Sciences › Atmospheric Science › Geology and Paleoclimatology Research
Physical Sciences › Earth and Planetary Sciences › Geophysics › Geological and Geochemical Analysis
Keywords: atmospheric CO2, early Earth atmosphere, paleosols, iron silicate minerals, iron carbonate, greenhouse effect, Late Archean, Early Proterozoic, paleoclimate
MeSH terms: Atmosphere, Carbon Dioxide, Climate, Ferrous Compounds, Fossils, Paleontology, Temperature, Water, Silicates, Greenhouse Effect, Earth, Planet, Geologic Sediments, Evolution, Planetary

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