Cited by 243Paleontology and Stratigraphy of FossilsGeological and Geochemical AnalysisGeology and Paleoclimatology Research

A 200-million-year delay in permanent atmospheric oxygenation

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Poulton, Simon W., Bekker, Andrey, Cumming, Vivien M., Zerkle, Aubrey L., Canfield, Donald E., Johnston, David T.·2021·Nature

Abstract

The rise of atmospheric oxygen fundamentally changed the chemistry of surficial environments and the nature of Earth's habitability 1. Early atmospheric oxygenation occurred over a protracted period of extreme climatic instability marked by multiple global glaciations 2,3, with the initial rise of oxygen concentration to above 10-5 of the present atmospheric level constrained to about 2.43 billion years ago 4,5. Subsequent fluctuations in atmospheric oxygen levels have, however, been reported to have occurred until about 2.32 billion years ago 4, which represents the estimated timing of irreversible oxygenation of the atmosphere 6,7. Here we report a high-resolution reconstruction of atmospheric and local oceanic redox conditions across the final two glaciations of the early Palaeoproterozoic era, as documented by marine sediments from the Transvaal Supergroup, South Africa. Using multiple sulfur isotope and iron-sulfur-carbon systematics, we demonstrate continued oscillations in atmospheric oxygen levels after about 2.32 billion years ago that are linked to major perturbations in ocean redox chemistry and climate. Oxygen levels thus fluctuated across the threshold of 10-5 of the present atmospheric level for about 200 million years, with permanent atmospheric oxygenation finally arriving with the Lomagundi carbon isotope excursion at about 2.22 billion years ago, some 100 million years later than currently estimated.

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Crossref · 10.1038/s41586-021-03393-7

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  • The onset of the Great Oxidation Event was marked by atmospheric O2 levels that were still relatively low and variable.

    “By some estimates, the onset of the GOE was marked by atmospheric O2 levels that were still relatively low and variable (e.g., Poulton et al., 2021).”

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Authors
Poulton, S. W., Bekker, A., Cumming, V. M., Zerkle, A. L., Canfield, D. E., & Johnston, D. T.
Affiliations
  • University of Leeds (GB)
  • University of California, Riverside (US)
  • Harvard University (US)
  • University of St Andrews (GB)
  • University of Southern Denmark (DK)
Corresponding author
Poulton, Simon W.
Venue
Nature
Published
2021-03-29
Volume
592
Issue
7853
Pages
232-236
ISSN
  • 0028-0836 (ISSN-L)
  • 1476-4687
OpenAlex
W3149564522
Cited by
243
References
68
Citations by year
2026: 31 · 2025: 59 · 2024: 47 · 2023: 35 · 2022: 43 · 2021: 27 · 2020: 1
FWCI
28.55
Type
journal article
Language
en
Locations
  • Nature (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • University of Southern Denmark Research Portal (University of Southern Denmark) (publishedVersion, other-oa)
  • Digital Access to Scholarship at Harvard (DASH) (Harvard University) (acceptedVersion)
  • White Rose Research Online (University of Leeds, The University of Sheffield, University of York) (acceptedVersion)
  • St Andrews Research Repository (St Andrews Research Repository) (acceptedVersion)
  • RePEc: Research Papers in Economics (submittedVersion)
Funders
  • National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NNX15AP58G)
  • Villum Fonden (00016518)
  • Leverhulme Trust
  • University of Johannesburg
Topics
  • Physical Sciences › Earth and Planetary Sciences › Paleontology › Paleontology and Stratigraphy of Fossils
  • Physical Sciences › Earth and Planetary Sciences › Geophysics › Geological and Geochemical Analysis
  • Physical Sciences › Earth and Planetary Sciences › Atmospheric Science › Geology and Paleoclimatology Research
Keywords
atmospheric oxygenation, Great Oxidation, oxygen fluctuations, ocean redox conditions, Transvaal Supergroup, sulfur isotopes, global glaciation, climate instability, marine sediment
MeSH terms
Atmosphere, Carbon Isotopes, Carbonates, Climate, Oceans and Seas, Oxidation-Reduction, Oxygen, Seawater, South Africa, Sulfur Isotopes, Time Factors, Ecosystem, Geologic Sediments, History, Ancient

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