Asteroid Chicxulub’s flaming dive not only extinguished the dinosaurs, but also left a crater up to 180 km in diameter and a series of jagged lava tubes, creating a large hydrothermal system deep beneath the earth. .
According to previous studies, the hydrothermal systems of early Earth were the place of formation of the first living organisms. According to new research led by Dr. David Kring of the Moon and Planets Institute (LPI – USA), the Chicxulub hydrothermal system has unwittingly recreated this past.
The structures extracted from the Chicxulub drill core are a “nursery” for a microbial life form similar to life on Earth four billion years ago.
By analyzing 15 tonnes of rock taken from a core drilled 1.3 km deep in Chicxulub, the authors identified the existence of the mineral pyrite, which can only be formed by an ecosystem of many microorganisms. living in a hot mineral environment of the hydrothermal system This life form differs from all modern life forms: they do not breathe oxygen or eat normal food, but take energy from the chemical reactions that occur in rock systems flooded with liquid, such as the conversion of sulphates they contain into sulphides, stored as pyrite.
This two-decade study concludes that this is exactly what happened at the beginning of Earth during the Handaean period, also known as the Hoa Thanh intermembrace or the ancient Tai dynasty. The great city of fire began when Earth was born 3.8 billion years ago. At that time, the earth was said to be a ball of hot lava, so the name “Handean” was derived from Hades – the lord of hell in Greek mythology.
It was during the great city of fire, under the oceans, that the first vital reactions began in the hydrothermal systems, which we still find today in Hawaii or in Antarctica.
Studies show that the first microorganisms on Earth may be over 4 billion years old. It is through these discoveries that astronomers direct the quest for extraterrestrial life to other hydrothermal bodies such as Saturn’s moon Enceladus.
For the new research mentioned above, scientists are still pursuing the quest and hope to learn more about the special life form that was “resurrected” from Earth 4 billion years ago, to better understand our own roots. The study has just been published in Astrobiology.
