As the moon's tug on the ocean slowed the rotation of our planet, longer days may have helped photosynthetic microbes breathe new life into the world. had been studying microbes called cyanobacteria for years, and she was initially skeptical when some colleagues came to her with an idea: Could the length of a day on early Earth have mattered to the rise of life as we know it?Day length has increased dramatically over Earth’s history. More than three billion years ago, entire days may have been just six hours long. And around 2.4 to 2.2 billion years ago, geological records indicate that the...…As the moon's tug on the ocean slowed the rotation of our planet, longer days may have helped photosynthetic microbes breathe new life into the world. had been studying microbes called cyanobacteria for years, and she was initially skeptical when some colleagues came to her with an idea: Could the length of a day on early Earth have mattered to the rise of life as we know it?Day length has increased dramatically over Earth’s history. More than three billion years ago, entire days may have been just six hours long. And around 2.4 to 2.2 billion years ago, geological records indicate that the...WW…

Life evolved on Earth over three and a half billion years ago. Scientists still aren't sure , but the general consensus is that it happened in the oceans. What we're still debating is when life arrived on land: depending on who you ask, it was either around three billion years ago, or just over 600 million years ago. Finding the answer will help us piece together the puzzle of life on Earth, and perhaps find signs of life on other planets.To learn about the past, geologists often turn to the present. are modern-day microbial communities that live at the top of soils in dry environments....…Life evolved on Earth over three and a half billion years ago. Scientists still aren't sure , but the general consensus is that it happened in the oceans. What we're still debating is when life arrived on land: depending on who you ask, it was either around three billion years ago, or just over 600 million years ago. Finding the answer will help us piece together the puzzle of life on Earth, and perhaps find signs of life on other planets.To learn about the past, geologists often turn to the present. are modern-day microbial communities that live at the top of soils in dry environments....WW…