Groundbreaking Study Reveals Production of ‘Dark Oxygen’ by Seafloor Metals
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An international team of researchers has made a groundbreaking discovery: oxygen can be generated in total darkness, about 4,000 meters below the ocean surface. This surprising discovery was published in the journal Nature Geosciences Monday and challenges long-held beliefs about the origins of oxygen on Earth.
The discovery focuses on potato-shaped metallic nodules found deep in the Pacific Ocean. These nodules, found at depths of about 13,100 feet, have been shown to produce oxygen through a process that does not require sunlight, overturning the traditional understanding that photosynthesis by plants and algae is the primary source of oxygen on our planet.
Professor Andrew Sweetman, from the Scottish Association for Marine Science, led the research team...