Scientists refer to this phenomenon as the Great Oxidation Event (GOE). About 2.5 billion years ago, free oxygen, or O2, began accumulating at significant levels in Earth's atmosphere, paving the way for the evolution of complex life on our developing planet. The research team studied marine rocks in the Transvaal region of South Africa, which provide insight into the dynamics of oxygen in the oceans during this crucial period in Earth's history.
The analysis found evidence of fluctuations in marine oxygen levels that coincided with changes in atmospheric oxygen. According to researchers This event lasted for 200 million years, and only then did oxygen become a permanent part of the atmosphere, much later than previously thought. The study also found that rare sulfur isotopes disappear and then reappear, indicating that atmospheric oxygen rises and falls several times during the GOE.
According to the researchers, Earth was not ready for oxygenation when oxygen production began, and the planet needed time to evolve biologically, geologically, and chemically to support oxygen.
According to a study, it took approximately 200 million years for oxygen to become a permanent part of our planet and for life to develop more easily.'>
