The preserved structures show a process that gave rise to life as we know it.
The story of life on Earth can’t be told without photosynthesis, the process by which plants (and some other lifeforms) convert sunlight into chemical energy. Now, a team of researchers has announced the discovery of fossilized photosynthetic structures—the oldest yet known—from a staggering 1.75 billion years ago.
The structures belong to microfossils of Navifusa majensis, a presumed cyanobacteria found in northern Australia. Cyanobacteria are a type of microorganism that get energy from oxygenic photosynthesis, by which water and carbon dioxide are converted—using energy from sunlight—into glucose and oxygen. Thus, the ancient bacteria help scientists understand how one of the most fundamental life processes on Earth arose. The team’s research is published today in Nature.
Read more at: https://gizmodo.com/1-75-billion-year-old-fossils-are-oldest-record-of-oxyg-1851137333?utm_source=vip