Tiny stones rewrite Earth’s evolution story

Scientists have uncovered an unexpected witness to Earth’s distant past: tiny iron oxide stones called ooids. These mineral snowballs lock away traces of ancient carbon, revealing that oceans between 1,000 and 541 million years ago held far less organic carbon than previously thought. This discovery challenges long-standing theories linking carbon levels, oxygen surges, and the emergence of complex life.

Study shows much more pollution leaking into atmosphere from oil sands operations than thought

An international team of chemical and environmental engineers has found that oil sands operations in Canada are emitting significantly more pollutants into the air than previously thought. In their study, reported in the journal Science, the group collected air samples using airplanes and tested them in their lab.

Neogene burial of organic carbon in the global ocean - Nature

A ‘bottom-up’ approach for calculating the rate of organic carbon burial in the global ocean shows larger variability than has been previously estimated, suggesting that the organic carbon cycle acted as positive feedback of past global warming.

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FSU researchers find decrease in crucial trace element preceded ancient mass extinction - Florida State University News

A decline in the element molybdenum across the planet’s oceans preceded a significant extinction event approximately 183 million years ago, new research from Florida State University shows. The decrease may have contributed to the mass extinction, in which up to 90% of species in the oceans perished, and it suggests that much more organic carbon […]

Study demonstrates efficiency of deltaic sediments for storing organic carbon for hundreds of thousands of years

An international research team with participation of the UAB team has succeeded in quantifying the volume of continental organic carbon stored in delta sediments from 75 million years ago. The research, published in Nature Geoscience, demonstrates that deltas are large stores of the planet's carbon and, therefore, important climate regulators over geological time periods.