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Old 01-05-2024, 09:17 AM   #189
Lake Winnipesaukee Assoc
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Very true ApS! They are an essential part of our origin story and can be found in almost every terrestrial and aquatic habitat. Cyanobacteria are such an important part of our ecosystem.

Quote:
Originally Posted by ApS View Post
1.75 Billion years ago, cyanobacteria started the "Great Oxygenation Event", making life on Earth possible. (As just reported in Nature magazine).

"As reported in a new study, scientists have found the oldest direct evidence of oxygenic photosynthetic structures—ones capable of turning sunlight, water and carbon dioxide into energy and oxygen—inside fossilized bacteria from Australia and Canada. The fossils are 1.75 billion years old, pushing back the undisputed origin of photosynthesis as we know it by at least 1.2 billion years. This key process helped life along by pumping the atmosphere full of oxygen."

--Nature

So cyanobacteria aren't ALL bad. Today, they still oxygenate the air we breathe.

Now I'm wondering if ancient flora started the production of fossilized fuels.

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