How Long Will Oxygen-Rich Atmosphere Sustain On Earth? Study Says...

The shift will take Earth back to something like the state it was in before what's known as the Great Oxidation Event (GOE) around 2.4 billion years ago, said the study.

Oxygen, the invisible elixir of life, is omnipresent on Earth, shaping the very essence of our existence. This life-sustaining gas, constituting about 21 per cent of the Earth's atmosphere, plays a pivotal role in the survival of countless species. But this was not always the case. When the planet was formed around 4.5 billion years ago, the conditions were vastly different. Carbon dioxide, methane and water vapour were dominant in Earth's atmosphere. And scientists have predicted that in future, Earth's atmosphere will revert to one that's low in oxygen.

A study, published in Nature in 2021, describes the scenario when it will happen. That time is still a billion years away, but when the change come, it is going to happen fairly rapidly.

The shift will take Earth back to something like the state it was in before what's known as the Great Oxidation Event (GOE) around 2.4 billion years ago, said the study.