Signatures of early microbial life from the Archean (4 to 2.5 Ga) eon

K Lepot - Earth-Science Reviews, 2020 - Elsevier
Abstract The Archean era (4 to 2.5 billion years ago, Ga) yielded rocks that include the
oldest conclusive traces of life as well as many controversial occurrences. Carbonaceous …

The importance of water for life

F Westall, A Brack - Space Science Reviews, 2018 - Springer
Liquid water is essential for life as we know it, ie carbon-based life. Although other
compound-solvent pairs that could exist in very specific physical environments could be …

Microbial life and biogeochemical cycling on land 3,220 million years ago

M Homann, P Sansjofre, M Van Zuilen, C Heubeck… - Nature …, 2018 - nature.com
The colonization of emergent continental landmass by microbial life was an evolutionary
step of paramount importance in Earth history. Here we report direct fossil evidence for life …

Earliest life on earth: evidence from the Barberton Greenstone Belt, South Africa

M Homann - Earth-Science Reviews, 2019 - Elsevier
Studies investigating the structure and diversity of Earth's record of life older than 3.2 Ga are
restricted to two locations worldwide in which sedimentary rocks have escaped regional …

Part B, volume 2, chapter 5: microbially induced sedimentary structures (MISS)

N Noffke, H Beraldi-Campesi, F Callefo, NB Carmona… - 2022 - rid.unrn.edu.ar
To date, microbialites include five groups: stromatolites, thrombolites, leiolites, and
dendrolites. All these microbialites occur in carbonate or silica lithologies. However …

The Close-Up Imager onboard the ESA ExoMars Rover: objectives, description, operations, and science validation activities

JL Josset, F Westall, BA Hofmann, J Spray, C Cockell… - Astrobiology, 2017 - liebertpub.com
Abstract The Close-Up Imager (CLUPI) onboard the ESA ExoMars Rover is a powerful high-
resolution color camera specifically designed for close-up observations. Its accommodation …

Most ancient evidence for life in the Barberton greenstone belt: Microbial mats and biofabrics of the∼ 3.47 Ga Middle Marker horizon

K Hickman-Lewis, B Cavalazzi, F Foucher… - Precambrian …, 2018 - Elsevier
Abstract The Middle Marker–horizon H1 of the Hooggenoeg Formation–is the oldest
sedimentary horizon in the Barberton greenstone belt and one of the oldest sedimentary …

The Moodies Group—a high-resolution archive of Archaean surface processes and basin-forming mechanisms

C Heubeck - The Archaean Geology of the Kaapvaal Craton …, 2019 - Springer
Abstract The Moodies Group is the uppermost and youngest unit of the Barberton
Supergroup, the volcanic-sedimentary sequence forming the Barberton Greenstone Belt …

Stromatolite-like Structures Within Microbially Laminated Sandstones of the Paleoarchean Moodies Group, Barberton Greenstone Belt, South Africa

C Heubeck, S Reimann, M Homann - Astrobiology, 2023 - liebertpub.com
We report abundant small calcareous mounds associated with fossilized kerogenous
microbial mats in tidal-facies sandstones of the predominantly siliciclastic Moodies Group …

Skeletal vs microbialite geobiological role in bioconstructions of confined marine environments

A Guido, A Rosso, R Sanfilippo, D Miriello… - Palaeogeography …, 2022 - Elsevier
The dark and confined conditions of submarine caves allow the development of cryptic
bioconstructions. They have been named “biostalactites” due to their distinctive growth from …