UNITED STATES: According to a recent study by scientists from Carnegie Science and UCLA, interactions between Earth’s magma oceans and hydrogen-rich atmosphere during its early stages may have produced the planet’s distinctive chemical makeup and distinguishing characteristics, including its profusion of water and overall oxidised state. Their findings, published in the journal Nature, offer a new approach to modelling planet formation and evolution.
For decades, scientists understanding of planet formation was based primarily on our solar system. However, the explosion of exoplanet research in the last decade has provided a new perspective on how planets are formed. Researchers have found that atmospheres rich in molecular hydrogen are frequently present around newly formed planets, leaving their mark on the planet’s makeup.
Scientists created new models for the genesis and evolution of the Earth using this data. They used mathematical models to explore the interchange of materials between molecular hydrogen atmospheres and magma oceans, looking at 25 different compounds and 18 different types of interactions.
The researchers found that in their model of a newborn Earth, interactions between the magma ocean and atmosphere resulted in the oxidation of the mantle, the production of considerable amounts of water, and the transport of significant amounts of hydrogen into the metallic core. These interactions between the molecular hydrogen atmosphere and the magma ocean would produce a lot of water even if all the rocky material that crashed to create the planet was absolutely dry.
The study’s lead author, Anat Shahar of Carnegie Science, emphasised that while this is only one theory for the evolution of our planet, it would establish a significant connection between the formation of Earth and the Super-Earth and sub-Neptune exoplanets, which have been identified as the most prevalent exoplanets orbiting other stars.
The findings might aid researchers in distinguishing between genuine biosignatures, which could only result from the presence of life, and atmospheric molecules with non-biological origins, which could lead to the discovery of signs of life on other planets.
The study is a component of the AEThER project, whose goal is to identify the chemical composition of the super-Earths and sub-Neptunes that are the most prevalent planets in the Milky Way galaxy.
The interdisciplinary, multi-institution project seeks to develop a framework for detecting the signatures of life on distant worlds by understanding how the formation and evolution of these planets shape their atmospheres.
The results from the AEThER project could inform astronomers’ observations with experimental and modelling data that may lead to a foolproof method for finding signs of life on other planets.
Astronomers are now able to understand the compositions of extraterrestrial atmospheres in unprecedented detail thanks to the development of more powerful telescopes.
Also Read: Secrets of Earth’s Interior Unravels: Researchers Discover a New Layer beneath Core-Mantle Boundary
