Uncover the secret of formation of the oldest rocks

On the young Earth could cause such high temperatures without assistance.

The oldest rocks ever found on Earth probably formed when the asteroid bombardment, said Australian scientists. Many “accidents” happened more than four billion years ago.

About three decades ago, scientists discovered near the river Acosta in Canada fallichesky ancient rocks, rich in silica. It is the oldest rocks on Earth age of 4.2 billion years. In other words, they were formed about 600 million years after the formation of the Earth and to the origin of life.

The findings contain a unique mixture of chemical elements (compared to similar rocks formed much later). The researchers suggested that the oldest objects appeared due to some other geological processes.

Doctor Tim Johnson (Tim Johnson) and his colleagues from the University Painting, Australia, simulated the probable conditions in which such rocks could have formed.

They came to the conclusion that their formation could contribute to the partial “melting” of the earth’s surface at temperatures from 800 to 900 degrees Celsius at very low pressure.

Ka says Johnson, the young Earth could cause such high temperatures without assistance. In his opinion, it played the role of late heavy bombardment, a period of intense asteroid impacts on Earth (and not only).

paradox