Discovery Of Oldest Ever Fossils Hints At Earlier Life On Earth

The world's oldest fossils have been found in Greenland, suggesting life may have emerged on Earth earlier than first thought.

A series of small conical structures were recently found on an exposed piece of rock in the sea, which have now been shown to be the oldest fossils of a living organism.

The tiny shapes were created by prehistoric bacteria and preserved in sedimentary rock for 3.7 billion years.

They are 220 million years older than the previous oldest known evidence for life - found in Pilbara Craton, Australia.

The newly discovered structures, known as stromatolites, suggest complex life was thriving on Earth earlier than thought.

They were formed by colonies of microbes living in the ancient ocean.

Writing in the journal Nature, researchers from the University of Wollongon said: "The recognition of 3,700 million-years-old biogenic stromatolites within Isua dolomites indicates that near the start of the preserved sedimentary record, atmospheric CO2 was being sequestered by biological activity.

"The complexity and setting of the Isua stromatolites points to sophistication in life systems at 3,700 million years ago, similar to that displayed by 3,480 - 3,400 million-years-old Pilbara stromatolites.

"This implies that by 3,700 million years ago life already had a considerable prehistory."

The rocky outcrop recently emerged from the ice in Isua, near Nuuk, on the southwest coast of Greenland.

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