Abstract.

"As a consequence of on-going global warming, the ocean is losing oxygen, which has implications not only in terms of marine resources management and food supply but also in terms of the potentially important feedback on the global carbon cycle and climate. Of particular scrutiny are the extended zones of already low levels of oxygen called the oxygen minimum zones (OMZs) embedded in the subsurface waters of the productive Eastern Boundary Upwelling Systems (EBUS). These OMZs are currently diversely simulated by state-of-the-art Earth System Models (ESM) hampering a reliable projection of ocean deoxygenation on marine ecosystem services in these regions. [...]".

Source: Nature 
Authors: Ivan Almendra et al.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s43247-024-01427-2

Read the full article here.

Abstract.

"Ocean dissolved oxygen (DO) can provide insights on how the marine carbon cycle affects global climate change. However, the net global DO change and the controlling mechanisms remain uncertain through the last deglaciation. Here, we present a globally integrated DO reconstruction using thallium isotopes, corroborating lower global DO during the Last Glacial Maximum [19 to 23 thousand years before the present (ka B.P.)] relative to the Holocene. [...]".

Source: Science Advances  
Authors: Yi Wang et al.
DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.adk2506

Read the full article here.

Full title: "Sedimentary environment and benthic oxygenation history of the Upper Cretaceous Austin Chalk Group, south Texas: An integrated ichnological, sedimentological and geochemical approach"

Abstract.

"Oxygen concentration in the ocean is vital for sustaining marine ecosystems. While the potential impacts of deoxygenation on modern oceans are hard to predict, lessons can be learned from better characterizing past geological intervals formed under a greenhouse climate. The greenhouse Cretaceous containing several oceanic anoxic events [...]".

Source: Wiley Online Library
Authors: Charlie Y. C. Zheng et al. 
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/sed.13169

Read the full article here.

Abstract.

"Marine redox conditions (that is, oxygen levels) impact a wide array of biogeochemical cycles, but the main controls of marine redox since the start of the Phanerozoic about 538 million years ago are not well established. Here we combine supervised machine learning with shale-hosted trace metal concentrations to reconstruct a near-continuous record of redox conditions in major marine depositional settings. We find synchronously opposite redox changes in upper ocean versus deep shelf and (semi-)restricted basin settings ('redox anticouples', nomen novum) in several multi-million-year intervals, which can be used to track the positions of oxygen-minimum zones and the primary locations of organic burial through time. [...]".

Source: Nature
Authors: Xiangli Wang et al. 
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41561-023-01296-y

Read the full article here.

Abstract.

"Atmospheric oxygen (O2) concentrations likely remained below modern levels until the Silurian–Devonian, as indicated by several recent studies. Yet, the background redox state of early Paleozoic oceans remains poorly constrained, hampering our understanding of the relationship between early animal evolution and O2. Here, we present a multi-proxy analysis of redox conditions in the Caledonian foreland basin to Baltica from the early to the mid-Silurian. [...]".

Source: Science Direct 
Authors: Emma R. Haxen et al.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.epsl.2023.118416

Read the full article here.

Abstract.

"Marine biodiversity increased markedly during the Ordovician Period (~487–443 million years ago). Some intervals within the Ordovician were associated with unusually rapid and prominent rises in taxonomic richness, the reasons for which remain debated. Links between increased oxygenation and biodiversification have been proposed, although supporting marine oxygen proxy data are limited. Here we present an expansive multi-site iodine-to-calcium (I/Ca) record from Lower–Middle Ordovician marine carbonates in Baltoscandia that provides a detailed account of the spatio-temporal development of oxygen conditions across this palaeoshelf. [...]".

Source: Nature
Authors: Anders Lindskog et al.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41561-023-01287-z

Read the full article here.

Abstract.

"The largest negative inorganic carbon isotope excursion in Earth’s history, namely the Ediacaran Shuram Excursion (SE), closely followed by early animal radiation, has been widely interpreted as a consequence of oceanic oxidation. However, the primary nature of the signature, source of oxidants, and tempo of the event remain contested. Here, we show that carbonate-associated sulfate (CAS) from three different paleocontinents all have conspicuous negative 17O anomalies (Δ′17OCAS values down to −0.53‰) during the SE. [...]".

Source: Nature
Authors: Haiyang Wang et al.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-023-39962-9

Read the full article here.

Abstract.

"The oxygen content of the oceans is susceptible to climate change and has declined in recent decades, with the largest effect in oxygen-deficient zones (ODZs), that is, mid-depth ocean regions with oxygen concentrations <5 μmol kg⁻¹ (ref.). Earth-system-model simulations of climate warming predict that ODZs will expand until at least 2100. The response on timescales of hundreds to thousands of years, however, remains uncertain. Here we investigate changes in the response of ocean oxygenation during the warmer-than-present Miocene Climatic Optimum (MCO; 17.0–14.8 million years ago (Ma)). [...]".

Source: Nature
Authors: Anya V. Hess et al.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-023-06104-6

Read the full article here.

Abstract. 

"The exchange of water masses between deep fjords and the open ocean is commonly constrained by a topographical barrier called the sill. While fjord water above the sill depth communicates relatively freely with the open ocean, water below the sill depth is caught inside the fjord basin. This basin water may remain stagnant in deep fjords for many successive years. During these periods, the biological consumption of dissolved oxygen is larger than the supply of new oxygen, and the fjord basin might experience hypoxia and even anoxia. [...]".

Source: Science Direct
Authors: Dag L. Aksnes et al.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecss.2023.108286 

Read the full article here.

Abstract. 

"Deep-sea oxygen concentrations reflect combined effects of air-sea exchange in high-latitude surface waters, ventilation through ocean circulation and the organic carbonremineralization at depth. Reconstruction of past bottom water oxygen (BWO) concentrations has been challenging due to limitations of each existing BWO proxy whose fidelity may be complicated by diagenetic or depositional factors. Therefore, evaluations on BWO changes with multi-proxy approach are always preferred. In this study, we exploit the authigenic uranium content on mixed planktonic foraminiferal coatings as a BWO proxy by presenting new foraminiferal [...]".

Source: Science Direct
Authors: Rong Hu et al.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.quascirev.2023.108028

Read the full article here.

Abstract. 

"The Mo isotope composition of late Ediacaran global seawater and the global extent of ocean oxygenation are still debated due to the complex controls on sedimentary Mo isotope compositions and the rarity with which sediments directly capture global seawater Mo isotope compositions. Deep-water sulfidic sediments from modern severely restricted basins like the Black Sea have the best chance of capturing global seawater Mo isotope compositions. However, few studies have focused on sedimentary Mo isotope variations and their causes in late Ediacaran restricted basins. [...]". 

Source: Science Direct
Authors: Zhaozhao Tan et al.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chemgeo.2023.121410

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Abstract. 

"Photosynthesis produces molecular oxygen, but it is the burial of organic carbon in sediments that has allowed this O2 to accumulate in Earth’s atmosphere. Yet many direct controls on the preservation and burial of organic carbon have not been explored in detail. For modern Earth, it is known that reactive iron phases are important for organic carbon preservation, suggesting that the availability of particulate iron could be an important factor for the oxygenation of the oceans and atmosphere over Earth history. Here we develop a theoretical model to investigate the effect of mineral–organic preservation on the oxygenation of the Earth, supported by a proxy [...]".

Source: Nature 
Authors: Mingyu Zhao et al.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41561-023-01133-2

Read the full article here.

Abstract. 

"The Rare Earth Element (REE) systematics of the post-Marinoan cap dolostones reflect the marine redox conditions and chemistry in the immediate aftermath of the snowball Earth. Rare earth elements and yttrium (REY) compositions in the Doushantuo cap dolostones that directly overlie Nantuo glacial diamictites in south China are determined from the inner shelf to the slope. In general, shale-normalized REY patterns (REYSN) of the cap dolostones show significant fractionations that are characterized by light REE depletion, slight middle REE enrichment relative to the light and heavy REEs, positive Eu anomalies, and slightly super-chondritic Y/Ho ratios. [...]".

Source: Science Direct
Authors: Min Ren & Ruifan Li
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sedgeo.2023.106343

Read the full article here.

Abstract. 

"Early animals experienced multiple-phase radiations and extinctions from the late Ediacaran to early Cambrian. Oxygen likely played an important role in these evolutionary events, but detailed marine redox evolution during this period remains highly debated. The emerging vanadium (V) isotope system can better capture short-term perturbations to global ocean redox conditions. In this study, we analyzed V isotope compositions [...]".

Source: Science Direct 
Authors: Wei Wei et al.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.epsl.2022.117942

Read the full article here.

Abstract. 

"Accurate monitoring of the long-term trend of oxygen content at global scale requires a better knowledge of the regional oxygen variability at interannual to decadal time scale. Here, we combined the Argo dataset and repeated ship-based sections to investigate the drivers of the oxygen variability in the North Atlantic Ocean, a key region for the oxygen supply into the deep ocean. We focus on the Labrador Sea Water in the Irminger Sea over the period 1991–2018 and we show that the oxygen solubility explains less than a third of the oxygen variability. [...]".

Source: Nature
Authors: Charlène Feucher et al.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s43247-022-00570-y

Read the full article here.

Abstract.

"Oxygen in the ocean has essential ecological and climatic functions, and can be an important indicator of deep-ocean ventilation and carbon storage. Previous studies are divided on whether the subsurface North Atlantic, which today is well-oxygenated, had higher or lower oxygen levels during the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM). Crucially, the limited number of previous reconstructions precludes any conclusions regarding basin-wide patterns in past changes in oxygenation. [...]".

Source: Science Direct 
Authors: Yuxin Zhou & Jerry F. McManus
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.quascirev.2022.107914

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Abstract. 

"The evolution of global ocean oxygenation during the early Cambrian remains highly controversial, making it difficult to evaluate how environmental triggers play a role in controlling the organic matter (OM) accumulation in black shales. In this study, an integrated approach, including total organic carbon (TOC) content, major and trace element geochemistry, and microscope images, was systematically conducted in a continuous core well that penetrated through the Lower Cambrian Yanjiahe (YJH)–Shuijingtuo (SJT, subdivided into SM Ⅰ, SM Ⅱ, SM Ⅲ, and SM Ⅳ members) successions (∼541-514Ma) at the Three Gorges area [...]".

Source: Science Direct 
Authors: Yu Zhang et al.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.marpetgeo.2022.105958

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Abstract. 

"Variations in ocean oxygen levels during Earth’s history have been linked to evolution and mass extinctions. Simulations now suggest that the configuration of the continents has a substantial impact on ocean oxygenation. [...]". 

Source: Nature
Authors: Katrin J. Meissner & Andreas Oschlies
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/d41586-022-02187-9

Read the full article here.

Abstract. 

"Modern anoxic marine sediments release phosphorus (P) to seawater, driving feedbacks at multiple timescales. On sub-Myr timescales, anoxic P regeneration amplifies ocean deoxygenation; on multi-Myr timescales, it stabilizes atmospheric O2. Some authors have extended this thinking to the Precambrian: by analogy, widespread ocean anoxia would imply extensive P regeneration from sediments. However, this neglects the role of sulfate in P regeneration. [...]".

Source: Geophysical Research Letters
Authors: Michael A. Kipp
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1029/2022GL099817

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Abstract. 

"Marine ironstone is a Phanerozoic biochemical sedimentary rock that contains abundant primary iron. Although rare, ironstone is conspicuous in the Paleozoic sedimentary record. Its iron source remains contentious, with traditional models invoking a continentally derived source. Increasing sedimentologic evidence suggests that many Paleozoic ironstones formed along favourably oriented continental margins where coastal upwelling delivered ferruginous waters, with the postulated source of iron being deep-ocean hydrothermal fluids. [...]".

Source: Science Direct 
Authors: Edward J. Matheson et al.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.epsl.2022.117715

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Abstract. 

"The early evolutionary and much of the extinction history of marine animals is thought to be driven by changes in dissolved oxygen concentrations ([O2]) in the ocean. In turn, [O2] is widely assumed to be dominated by the geological history of atmospheric oxygen (pO2). Here, by contrast, we show by means of a series of Earth system model experiments how continental rearrangement during the Phanerozoic Eon drives profound variations in ocean oxygenation and induces a fundamental decoupling in time between upper-ocean and benthic [O2]. [...]". 

Source: Nature
Authors: Alexandre Pohl et al.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-022-05018-z 

Read the full article here.

Abstract.

"This study addresses marine palaeoredox conditions of the mid-Neoproterozoic by analysing the Mo isotope, trace element, and U-Th-Pb isotope compositions of shallow water microbial carbonate, deep water pelagic carbonate, and shale from the Stone Knife Formation (SKF) in NW Canada. The U-Th-Pb isotope SKF systematics of reef microbialite carbonates, and the moderately expressed negative Ce anomalies are consistent with the presence of dissolved O2 in the surface waters. [...]".

Source: Science Direct 
Authors: Edel Mary O'Sullivan et al.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.precamres.2022.106760

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Abstract. 

"The Ediacaran Period (∼635 to 541 Ma) witnessed the early diversification and radiation of metazoans, in the form of the Ediacaran Biota. This biological revolution, beginning at ∼575 Ma, has been widely attributed to a temporally restricted episode of deeper ocean oxygenation, potentially caused by a contemporaneous rise in atmospheric oxygen levels. However, quantitative geochemical-record-driven estimates of Ediacaran atmospheric and oceanic redox evolution are lacking, and hence possible links between oceanic and atmospheric oxygenation remain speculative. [...]". 

Source: Science Direct 
Authors: Wei Shi et al.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.epsl.2022.117619

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Abstract. 

"The deep ocean is generally considered to have changed from anoxic in the Precambrian to oxygenated by the Late Paleozoic (∼420–400 Ma) due to changes in atmospheric oxygen concentrations. When the transition occurred, that is, in the Early Paleozoic or not until the Late Paleozoic, is less well constrained. To address this, we measured Fe3+/ΣFe of volcanic rocks, sheeted dykes, gabbros, and ultramafic rocks from the Early Paleozoic (∼485 Ma) Bay of Islands (BOI) ophiolite as a proxy for hydrothermal alteration in the presence or absence of O2 derived from deep marine fluids. [...]".

Source: Geochemistry, Geophysics, Geosystems 
Authors: Daniel A. Stolper et al. 
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1029/2021GC010196

Read the full article here.

Abstract.

"Microbe-metazoan transitions (MMTs), representing a switch from microbe-mediated to metazoan-mediated carbonate production, have been linked to major changes in Earth-surface conditions. The ‘late Cambrian MMT’ (nomen novum), during which microbial reefs were replaced by maceriate and lithistid sponge reefs, coincided with a sharp rise in atmospheric O2 levels attributed to the Steptoean Positive Carbon Isotope Excursion (SPICE) at ~497–494 Ma. However, relationships between atmospheric oxygenation, marine redox conditions, and the MMT have not been thoroughly investigated to date. [...]". 

Source: Science Direct 
Authors: Lei Zhang et al.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gloplacha.2022.103798

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Abstract. 

"We present new geochemical evidence of changes in oxygenation of the deep Antarctic Pacific over the last 770 kyr. Our data are derived from redox-sensitive metals and export production proxies extracted from gravity core ANT34/A2-10 at 4217 m water depth. Our results show that oxygen levels in the deep Antarctic Zone (AZ) varied in line with the release of deeply sequestered remineralized carbon to the atmosphere during glacial–interglacial (G–IG) cycles, with lower oxygen concentrations and more carbon storage during glacial periods. Subsequent reductions in the amount of carbon stored at depth were closely associated with improved ventilation during glacial terminations. [...]".

Source: Lithosphere

Authors: Zheng Tang et al. 

DOI: https://doi.org/10.2113/2022/1835176

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Abstract.

"Oxygen availability is crucial for the evolution of eukaryotes in geological history, yet detailed Mesoproterozoic oceanic-atmospheric redox conditions remain enigmatic. In contrast to the generally accepted hypothesis of an anoxic mid-Proterozoic ocean and atmosphere, several transient oxygenation events may occur at the Earth’s surface during the Mesoproterozoic, especially for the period around 1.4 Ga. The North China Platform develops one of the most complete and continuous Mesoproterozoic stratigraphic successions globally, preserving key information on the redox state of the surface ocean–atmosphere system during the mid-Proterozoic. [...]".

Source: Science Direct

Authors: Yang Yu et al.

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.precamres.2021.106527

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Abstract.

"The middle Paleozoic (∼420-350 Myr) records a major increase in ocean-atmosphere oxygen levels; however, the timing and pattern of oxygenation are poorly constrained. Two well-dated North American locations in Nevada and Illinois were used to generate a high-resolution U-isotopic profile (U) spanning ∼70 Myr of the middle Paleozoic. Stratigraphic and geochemical data support the interpretation that the Nevada profile represents a near-primary record of global-ocean redox variations. First-order U trends indicate strongly reducing oceans during the late Silurian and Early Devonian, terminated by a major oxygenation event near the Emsian-Eifelian boundary (∼395 Ma). More oxic seawater conditions persisted for the next 30+ Myr, but were punctuated by multiple Myr-scale anoxic events during the Middle-Late Devonian and Early Mississippian that correlate with known global biotic crises, positive C excursions, and widespread organic-rich facies deposition. [...]".

Source: Science Direct

Authors: Maya Elrick et al.

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.epsl.2022.117410

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Abstract.

"Small boreal lakes are known to contribute significantly to global methane emissions. Lake Lovojärvi is a eutrophic lake in Southern Finland with bottom water methane concentrations up to 2 mM. However, the surface water concentration, and thus the diffusive emission potential, was low (< 0.5 μM). We studied the biogeochemical processes involved in methane removal by chemical profiling and through incubation experiments. δ13C-CH4 profiling of the water column revealed methane-oxidation hotspots just below the oxycline and within the anoxic water column. In incubation experiments involving the addition of light and/or oxygen, methane oxidation rates in the anoxic hypolimnion were enhanced 3-fold, suggesting a major role for photosynthetically fueled aerobic methane oxidation. A distinct peak in methane concentration was observed at the chlorophyll a maximum[...]"

Source: Biogeoscience
Authors: Sigrid van Grinsven et al.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-2021-3

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Abstract.

"Ocean acidification is predicted to have widespread impacts on marine species. The early life stages of fishes, being particularly sensitive to environmental deviations, represent a critical bottleneck to recruitment. We investigated the effects of ocean acidification (∆pH = −0.4) on the oxygen consumption and morphometry during the early ontogeny of a commercially important seabream, Chrysoblephus laticeps, up until flexion. Hatchlings appeared to be tolerant to hypercapnic conditions, exhibiting no difference in oxygen consumption or morphometry between treatments, although the yolk reserves were marginally reduced in the low-pH treatment. The preflexion stages appeared[...]"

Source: MDPI
Authors: Cuen Muller et al.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/oceans2010002

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Abstract.

"The mid-Proterozoic (1.8–0.8 Ga) may have witnessed persistent and predominant anoxia at the Earth’s surface. However, recent studies suggest that there was a period around ~1.4 Ga where oxygen levels might have been transiently elevated, both in the atmosphere and oceans. In order to shed light on this debated topic, we analyzed rare earth elements plus Y (REY) and Cr isotope profiles of the carbonate rocks from the ~1.44-Gyr-old Tieling Formation consisting of the lower Daizhuangzi (DZZ) and upper Laohuding (LHD) Members at the Jixian section, North China. The DZZ samples are characterized by middle REE enriched, hump-shaped REY distribution patterns, while those of the LHD Member display[...]"

Source: Science Direct
Authors: Wei Wei et al.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.precamres.2020.106058

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sea urchin Paracentrotus lividus

Abstract.

"In marinas and harbours, the accumulation of pollutants in sediments, combined with poor exchange of water with the open sea, poses a major environmental threat. The presence of photosynthetic organisms and the related oxygen production, however, may alleviate the negative effects of environmental contamination on heterotrophic organisms, enhancing their physiological defences. Furthermore, possible transgenerational buffer effects may increase the ability of natural populations to face environmental[...]"

Source: Science Direct
Authors: Antonia Chiarore et al.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.marenvres.2020.104967

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Abstract.

"Oxygen depleted areas are widespread in the marine realm. Unlike macrofauna, meiofauna are abundant in hypoxic sediments. We studied to what extent meiofauna affect oxygen availability, sulfide removal and microbial communities. Meiofauna were extracted alive and added to intact sediments simulating abundance gradients previously reported in the area. [...]"

Source: Marine Environmental Research
Authors: Stefano Bonaglia et al.
DOI: 10.1016/j.marenvres.2020.104968

Read the full article here.

Abstract.

"Few topics in geobiology have been as extensively debated as the role of Earth's oxygenation in controlling when and why animals emerged and diversified. All currently described animals require oxygen for at least a portion of their life cycle. Therefore, the transition to an oxygenated planet was a prerequisite for the emergence of animals. Yet, our understanding of Earth's oxygenation and the environmental requirements of animal habitability and ecological success is currently limited; estimates for the timing of the appearance of environments sufficiently oxygenated to support ecologically stable populations of animals span a wide range, from billions of years to only a few million years before animals appear in the fossil record. [...]"

Source: Geobiology
Authors: Devon B. Cole et al.
DOI: 10.1111/gbi.12382

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Abstract.

"The deep-ocean carbon cycle, especially carbon sequestration and outgassing, is one of the mechanisms to explain variations in atmospheric CO₂ concentrations on millennial and orbital timescales. However, the potential role of subtropical North Pacific subsurface waters in modulating atmospheric CO₂ levels on millennial timescales is poorly constrained. An increase in the respired CO₂ concentration in the glacial deep-ocean due to biological pump generally corresponds to deoxygenation in the ocean interior. [...]"

Source: Climate of the Past
Authors: Jianjun Zou et al.
DOI: 10.5194/cp-16-387-2020

Read the full article here.

Abstract.

"Numerous studies have provided compelling evidence that the Pacific Ocean has experienced substantial glacial/interglacial changes in bottom-water oxygenation associated with enhanced carbon dioxide storage in the glacial deep ocean. Under postulated low glacial bottom-water oxygen concentrations (O2bw), redox zonation, biogeochemical processes and element fluxes in the sediments must have been distinctively different during the last glacial period (LGP) compared to current well-oxygenated conditions. [...]"

Source: Earth and Planetary Science Letters
Authors: Jessica B.Volz et al.
DOI: 10.1016/j.epsl.2019.116012

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Abstract.

"Oxygenation of Earth’s atmosphere and oceans occurred across three major steps during the Paleoproterozoic, Neoproterozoic, and Paleozoic eras, with each increase having profound consequences for the biosphere. Biological or tectonic revolutions have been proposed to explain each of these stepwise increases in oxygen, but the principal driver of each event remains unclear. Here we show, using a theoretical model, that the observed oxygenation steps are a simple consequence of internal feedbacks in the long-term biogeochemical cycles of carbon, oxygen, and phosphorus, and that there is no requirement for a specific stepwise external forcing to explain the course of Earth surface oxygenation. [...]"

Source: Science
Authors: Lewis J. Alcott et al.
DOI: 10.1126/science.aax6459

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Abstract.

"The emergence of oxygenic photosynthesis created a new niche with dramatic potential to transform energy flow through Earth’s biosphere. However, more primitive forms of photosynthesis that fix CO2 into biomass using electrons from reduced species like Fe(II) and H2 instead of water would have competed with Earth’s early oxygenic biosphere for essential nutrients. [...]"

Source: Nature Communications
Authors: Kazumi Ozaki et al.
DOI: 10.1038/s41467-019-10872-z

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Abstract.

"A rise in atmospheric O₂ levels between 800 and 400 Ma is thought to have oxygenated the deep oceans, ushered in modern biogeochemical cycles, and led to the diversification of animals. Over the same time interval, marine sulfate concentrations are also thought to have increased to near-modern levels. We present compiled data that indicate Phanerozoic island arc igneous rocks are more oxidized (Fe³⁺/ΣFe ratios are elevated by 0.12) vs. Precambrian equivalents. [...]"

Source: PNAS
Authors: Daniel A. Stolper and Claire E. Bucholz
DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1821847116

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Abstract.

"The Archean Eon was a time of predominantly anoxic Earth surface conditions, where anaerobic processes controlled bioessential element cycles. In contrast to “oxygen oases” well documented for the Neoarchean [2.8 to 2.5 billion years ago (Ga)], the magnitude, spatial extent, and underlying causes of possible Mesoarchean (3.2 to 2.8 Ga) surface-ocean oxygenation remain controversial. [...]"

Source: PNAS
Authors: Frantz Ossa Ossa et al.
DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1818762116

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"A carbon cycle anomaly discovered in carbonate rocks of the Neoproterozoic Hüttenberg Formation of north-eastern Namibia follows a pattern similar to that found right after the Great Oxygenation Event, hinting at new evidence for how Earth's atmosphere became fully oxygenated.

By using the Hüttenberg Formation, which formed between a billion and half a billion years ago, to study the time between Earth's change from an anoxic environment (i.e. one lacking oxygen) to a more hospitable environment that heralded the animal kingdom, a team of researchers led by Dr. Huan Cui of the NASA Astrobiology Institute at the University of Wisconsin–Madison discovered a sustained, high level of carbon. This influx of carbon, coupled with changes in other elements, indicates how changing levels of oceanic oxygen may have lent a helping hand to early animal evolution. [...]"

Source: Phys.org

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Abstract.

The diversification of metazoans during the latest Neoproterozoic and early Cambrian has been attributed to, among other factors, a progressive rise in surface oxygen levels. However, recent results have also questioned the idea of a prominent rise in atmospheric oxygen levels or a major or unidirectional shift in the marine redox landscape across this interval. Here, we present new carbonate-associated uranium isotope data from upper Ediacaran to lower Cambrian marine carbonate successions. [...]"

Source: Geology
Authors: Guang-Yi Wei et al.
DOI: 10.1130/G40150.1

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Abstract.

"The Ediacaran–Cambrian transition is a critical period in Earth history, during which both marine environment and life experienced drastic changes. It was suggested that pervasive oxygenation and associated chemical changes in the ocean have potentially triggered the rapid diversification of early Cambrian metazoans. The timing and process of ocean oxygenation, however, have not been well constrained. [...]"

Source: Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology
Authors: Xiangkuan Zhao et al.
DOI: 10.1016/j.palaeo.2018.05.009

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Abstract.

"Emerging geochemical evidence suggests that the atmosphere-ocean system underwent a significant decrease in O₂ content following the Great Oxidation Event (GOE), leading to a mid-Proterozoic ocean (ca. 2.0–0.8 Ga) with oxygenated surface waters and predominantly anoxic deep waters. The extent of mid-Proterozoic seafloor anoxia has been recently estimated using mass-balance models based on molybdenum (Mo), uranium (U), and chromium (Cr) enrichments in organic-rich mudrocks (ORM).  [...]"

Source: Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta
Authors: Alex I.Sheen et al.
DOI: 10.1016/j.gca.2018.01.036

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Abstract.

"The largest radiation of Phanerozoic marine animal life quadrupled genus-level diversity towards the end of the Ordovician Period about 450 million years ago. A leading hypothesis for this Great Ordovician Biodiversification Event is that cooling of the Ordovician climate lowered sea surface temperatures into the thermal tolerance window of many animal groups, such as corals. [...]"

Source: Nature Geoscience
Authors: Cole T. Edwards
DOI: 10.1038/s41561-017-0006-3

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Abstract.

"The Arabian Sea represents a prime example of an open ocean extended oxygen minimum zone (OMZ) with low oxygen concentrations (down to less than 2 mM) between 200 and 1000 m water depth. The OMZ impinges on the ocean floor, affect ingorganic matter (OM) mineralization. We investigated impact of oxygen depletion on the composition of macromolecularOM (MOM) along a transect through the OMZ on the slopes of the Murray Ridge. This sub-marine high in the northern Arabian Sea, with the top at approximately 500 m below sea surface (mbss), intersects the OMZ. We analyzed sediments deposited in the core of OMZ (suboxic conditions) [...]"

Source: Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta 206
Authors: Nierop, K.G.J.; Reichart, G.-J.; Veld, H.; Sinninghe Damsté, J.S
DOI: dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.gca.2017.02.032

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