Written by Kevin C. Nice | issued
On the Puna de Atacama Salar plateau in Argentina, scientists recently discovered an entire lagoon system, part of a previously hidden ecosystem. Within these lagoons are giant layered rocks called stromatolites, which are formed by the photosynthesis of cyanobacteria, a type of blue-green algae. These stromatolites could provide scientists with new insights into early life that developed on Earth, and perhaps, new research suggests, life on Mars.
These hidden lagoons give scientists a view of life on Earth 3.5 billion years ago.
Stromatolites like those found in this newly discovered hidden lagoon system are believed by NASA scientists to be one of the oldest ecosystems on Earth. It contains the oldest fossil record of life on Earth, about 3.5 billion years ago.
Brian Hynek, a professor of geological sciences at the University of Colorado Boulder, said the fossils found in these stromatolites are some of the oldest macrofossils on Earth, in an environment that is extremely rare on Earth. .
These hidden lagoons give scientists a view of life on Earth 3.5 billion years ago. During Earth’s prehistoric period, the Precambrian period, which lasted from about 4.6 billion years ago to 541 million years ago, stromatolites were very common and spread throughout the world. At this point in our history, they are only found in a few places around the world.
But ancient stromatolites, like those found in the hidden lagoons of Puna de Atacama, were much larger than those seen on Earth today, measuring 20 feet (6 meters) tall and 16 to 22 feet (5 to 22 feet) wide. 7 meters). . The newly discovered stromatolites are not very large, with a maximum width of about 15 feet (4.5 meters). Hynek isn’t sure how these stromatolites got so big, but thinks it could be the fact that their ecosystem has remained undisturbed for a long time. said.
mars connection
![Terra Formars](https://www.giantfreakinrobot.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/mars-g6c84ce05d_1280-900x506.jpg)
Hynek said the stromatolites found in the hidden lagoon could be the result of anoxic photosynthesis by microorganisms. If this is true, it could provide a deeper understanding of the possibility of life on Mars. The red planet may once have had an ocean, as it has more than 600 ancient lakes, meaning it potentially looked much more like Earth thousands of years ago.
These stromatolites found in hidden lagoons also contain halite and gypsum, minerals known to be abundant on Mars. The question is whether Mars could have supported life through photosynthesis, but if it did, these stromatolites are exactly where we would expect to find them, Hynek says.
Studying these ancient stromatolites also involves other questions, such as when oxygen arose on Mars and whether the right conditions were present to generate life at some point in Mars’ past. will help you learn more and gain insight into the early history of our planet. To life in another world.
sauce: CNN