The DOI matches its Crossref record; 33 of the 33 references it cites were found in a registry or an index.
Late Archean euxinic conditions before the rise of atmospheric oxygen
Abstract
Life on Earth is thought to have coevolved with the chemistry of the oceans and atmosphere, and the shift from an anoxic to an oxic world across the Archean-Proterozoic boundary represents a fundamental step in this process. In order to understand the relative influence of biological and geological factors on this transition, we must constrain key variables in seawater chemistry before the Great Oxidation Event (ca. 2500 Ma). We present a multi-element (C-S-Fe-Mo) biogeochemical study of ca. 2662 Ma shales from the Hamersley Province in Western Australia. Our data reveal a sustained episode of Fe-limited pyrite formation under an anoxic and sulfidic (euxinic) water column. This is the oldest known occurrence of euxinia in Earth’s history and challenges the paradigm of persistently Fe-rich Archean oceans. Bulk trace metal chemistry and preservation of strong mass-independent S isotope fractionations in sedimentary pyrites indicate that ocean euxinia was possible prior to oxidative weathering, suggesting that sulfidic waters may have been common throughout the Archean Eon. C-S-Fe systematics suggest that oxygenic photosynthesis was the primary source of organic carbon in the basin, and the absence of Mo enrichments highlights a potential link between inefficient nitrogen fixation and the delayed arrival of the Great Oxidation Event.
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“Scott et al. (2011) have subsequently shown that euxinic conditions could develop under an Archaean anoxic atmosphere, and alternatives to the 'whiff' model have been proposed.”
From Iron formations: A global record of Neoarchaean to Palaeoproterozoic environmental history (2017) · cites this paper as Scott et al., 2011
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Cites
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Proterozoic Ocean Chemistry and Evolution: A Bioinorganic Bridge?
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Structural basis of biological nitrogen fixation
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Section 9. The History of the Iron Biogeochemical Cycle
Raiswell, R., & Canfield, D. E. (2012) · Geochemical Perspectives · Cited by 1
Phosphorus Cycling under different redox conditions
Xiong, Y. (2018) · White Rose eTheses Online (University of Leeds, The University of Sheffield, University of York) · Cited by 1
Thoby, M. (2018) · theses.fr (ABES) · doi:10.70675/c78aad7dza1d6z46f7z9a74zf411ae3d4b16 · Cited by 1
REASSESSING THE BIOGENICITY OF PUTATIVE MICROFOSSILS IN THE 3.5 BILLION YEAR OLD APEX CHERT
Emry, J. R. (2015) · KU ScholarWorks (The University of Kansas)
Storelli, N., Steiner, O. S., Nezio, F. D., Roman, S., Buetti‐Dinh, A., & Bouffard, D. (2024) · Research Square · doi:10.21203/rs.3.rs-3744815/v1
The nature of the rock record: Through the lens of the rock cycle
Walton, C. R. (2024) · Elsevier eBooks · doi:10.1016/b978-0-323-99762-1.00120-0 · Cited by 1
Migeon, A., Afroz, M., Patry, L. A., Bonnand, P., Sansjofre, P., Fralick, P., & Lalonde, S. V. (2025) · Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta · doi:10.1016/j.gca.2025.08.019
Ostrander, C. M., Heard, A. W., Kendall, B., Nicklas, R. W., Bekker, A., Johnson, A. C., Anbar, A. D., & Lyons, T. W. (2025) · Elsevier eBooks · doi:10.1016/b978-0-323-95547-8.00021-5
Baransky, E. J., Sun, M., & Wasylenki, L. E. (2026) · Chemical Geology · doi:10.1016/j.chemgeo.2026.123504
Metadata
- Authors
- Scott, C. T., Bekker, A., Reinhard, C. T., Schnetger, B., Krapež, B., Rumble, D., & Lyons, T. W.
- Affiliations
- University of California, Riverside (US)
- University of Manitoba (CA)
- Carl von Ossietzky Universität Oldenburg (DE)
- Curtin University (AU)
- Corresponding author
- Scott, Clinton T.
- ORCID
- Venue
- Geology
- Publisher
- Geological Society of America
- Published
- 2011-02
- Volume
- 39
- Issue
- 2
- Pages
- 119-122
- ISSN
- 0091-7613 (ISSN-L)
- 1943-2682
- OpenAlex
- W2069391178
- Cited by
- 109
- References
- 33
- Citations by year
- 2026: 2 · 2025: 6 · 2024: 6 · 2023: 1 · 2022: 1 · 2021: 3 · 2020: 8 · 2019: 10 · 2018: 7 · 2017: 7 · 2016: 8 · 2015: 6 · 2014: 7 · 2013: 16 · 2012: 13
- FWCI
- 9.74
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- Geology (publishedVersion)
- eSpace (Curtin University) (submittedVersion)
- Topics
- Physical Sciences › Earth and Planetary Sciences › Paleontology › Paleontology and Stratigraphy of Fossils
- Physical Sciences › Earth and Planetary Sciences › Geochemistry and Petrology › Geochemistry and Elemental Analysis
- Physical Sciences › Physics and Astronomy › Astronomy and Astrophysics › Origins and Evolution of Life
- Keywords
- Great Oxidation Event, Archean-Proterozoic boundary, molybdenum, nitrogen fixation, oxygenic photosynthesis, oxidative weathering
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