Brialore Campbell - Mini-research project

Fun Facts

• The archaea used a pigment called retinal to utilize the sun's energy. The retinal would have given these microbes a purple hue.

• The first solid evidence of modern tectonic plates is found at around 2.8 billion years ago, with some research suggesting the formation almost 3.2 billion years ago.

• Some of the oldest known disvoered fossils come from the Archaean Eon. These fossils are callled stromatolites, and are mounded colonies of photosynthetic bacteria, dated back to 3.5 billion years ago

• A day on Earth during the Archaen Eon was between 9 and 18 hours, due to the slower spin rate of the Earth.

Major event

The Archaean Eon features a world very different from the one we know today. The first evidence of anoxygenic life appears during this eon, with microbial archaea populating the oceans. This archea did not use chlorophyll as modern microbes use, but instead used retinal, utilizing a simpler energy conversion process. The theory about the purple hue of the Earth in its early life changes our perspective on where complex life might be possible in other parts of our universe.

Archaean eon

4.0 - 2.5 Billion Years Ago

Hover over each picture to learn more!