New evidence challenges theories on the origin of water on Earth, study suggests

Researchers say they have uncovered evidence that early Earth was home to more hydrogen than previously thought, calling into question widely held beliefs about the origins of water and the evolution of our planet.

Scientists from the University of Oxford analyzed a rare type of meteorite known as an enstatite chondrite. The space rock dates to around 4.6 billion years ago and is believed to be similar in composition to early Earth, according to a study published Wednesday in the journal Icarus.

The researchers found that the majority of the hydrogen contained within the meteorite was intrinsic, rather than being present due to contamination, suggesting that early Earth would have been home to sufficient hydrogen to have allowed the formation of water molecules.

This finding calls into question the widely held belief that hydrogen arrived on Earth in asteroids that bombarded what was previously a dry, rocky planet incapable of supporting life.

“We assumed that Earth has water today because of quite a lucky scenario where it had been hit by these asteroids,” lead study author Tom Barrett, a doctoral student in the department of Earth sciences at the University of Oxford, told CNN on Wednesday.

“But what we’ve demonstrated in this study is that actually the material which formed Earth in the first instance actually did contain a lot of hydrogen and oxygen,” he added. “The discovery of hydrogen in this meteorite means that Earth potentially could have been hydrated or wet from its initial formation.”

As for why the levels of hydrogen identified in the study previously hadn’t been detected, Barrett explained the chemical element is hard to measure, particularly at such low concentrations. The detection was only possible thanks to a technique known as X-ray Absorption Near Edge Structure, or XANES, spectroscopy, порно групповое жесток he said.