Ancient Microbes Found in Asteroid-Created Lakes Hint at Early Earth Oxygen Niches
Scientists in South Korea found stromatolites inside the Hapcheon crater, formed in a hydrothermal lake created by an asteroid impact. Geochemical and genetic evidence suggests thermophilic microbes thrived there, potentially creating localized oxygen-rich conditions long before Earth’s atmosphere fully oxidized, offering insights for the Great Oxidation Event and Mars exploration.