Origin of life

General and Historical Geology Group, Institute of Geosciences, University of Jena

This is not the moon, but a geological retrospection into the origin and evolution of life - more precisely, at least 3.2 billion years back. This is how old this "stromatolite" is, the cross-section of which is shown here. Stromatolites are a combination of fossils, that are calcareous sediments and superficial microbial growth, that are bacteria, and archaea which colonized the earth at that time. The alternate layers of these two components form the fine banding inside the cross-section. PhD student Sebastian Reimann is studying such archives of the earliest living conditions in southern Africa in order to decrypt the mystery of the origin of life.

© Sebastian Reimann

Origin of life

General and Historical Geology Group, Institute of Geosciences, University of Jena

This is not the moon, but a geological retrospection into the origin and evolution of life - more precisely, at least 3.2 billion years back. This is how old this "stromatolite" is, the cross-section of which is shown here. Stromatolites are a combination of fossils, that are calcareous sediments and superficial microbial growth, that are bacteria, and archaea which colonized the earth at that time. The alternate layers of these two components form the fine banding inside the cross-section. PhD student Sebastian Reimann is studying such archives of the earliest living conditions in southern Africa in order to decrypt the mystery of the origin of life.

© Sebastian Reimann