Publication Date:
2019
Description:
〈b〉Organic signatures in Pleistocene cherts from Lake Magadi (Kenya), analogs for early Earth hydrothermal deposits〈/b〉〈br〉
Manuel Reinhardt, Walter Goetz, Jan-Peter Duda, Christine Heim, Joachim Reitner, and Volker Thiel〈br〉
Biogeosciences Discuss., https//doi.org/10.5194/bg-2018-513,2019〈br〉
〈b〉Manuscript under review for BG〈/b〉 (discussion: open, 0 comments)〈br〉
Organic matter in Archean hydrothermal cherts may contain molecular traces of early life. Alteration processes during and after deposition, however, may have obliterated potential biosignatures. Our results from modern analog samples (Pleistocene cherts from Lake Magadi, Kenya) show that biomolecules can survive early hydrothermal destruction in the macromolecular fraction of the organic matter. A conservation of molecular biosignatures in Archean hydrothermal cherts therefore seems possible.
Print ISSN:
1810-6277
Electronic ISSN:
1810-6285
Topics:
Biology
,
Geosciences
