Home / Palaeoclimate / The Rise of Oxygen and the Global Carbon Cycle

American Museum of Natural History, Learning Resources: The Rise of Oxygen. This website is part of Science Bulletins, an innovative online and exhibition program that offers the public a window into the excitement of scientific discovery.

BBC Earth timeline.
Oxygen enters the atmosphere.

D. Beerling et al. (2009): Methane and the CH₄ related greenhouse effect over the past 400 million years. In PDF.

! D.J. Beerling and D.L. Royer (2002): Fossil plants as indicators of the Phanerozoic global carbon cycle. PDF file, Annu. Rev. Earth Planet. Sci., 30: 527-556.

D.J. Beerling et al. (2001): Evolution of leaf-form in land plants linked to atmospheric CO₂ decline in the Late Palaeozoic era. PDF file, Nature, 410.

D.J. Beerling (1998): The future as the key to the past for palaeobotany? PDF file, Trends in Ecology & Evolution.

D. J. Beerling et al.(1998): The influence of Carboniferous palaeoatmospheres on plant function: an experimental and modelling assessment. PDF file, Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B, 353, 131-140.

D.J. Beerling and R.A. Berner (2005): Feedbacks and the coevolution of plants and atmospheric CO₂. In PDF, PNAS, 102.

! A. Bekker et al. (2004): Dating the rise of atmospheric oxygen. PDF file, Nature, 427: 117-120. "Several lines of geological and geochemical evidence indicate that the level of atmospheric oxygen was extremely low before 2.45 billion years (Gyr) ago, and that it had reached considerable levels by 2.22 Gyr ago. (...) evidence that the rise of atmospheric oxygen had occurred by 2.32 Gyr ago". See also here. (abstract).

! C.M. Belcher et al. (2010): Baseline intrinsic flammability of Earth´s ecosystems estimated from paleoatmospheric oxygen over the past 350 million years. In PDF, PNAS, 107.

Phil Berardelli, ScienceNOW Daily News: Oxygenated Oceans Go Way, Way Back. See also: New Evidence for an Earlier Origin of Oxygenic Photosynthesis (NASA Astrobiology Institute).

! R.A. Berner et al. (2007): Oxygen and evolution. In PDF, Science, 316.

! R.A. Berner (2006): GEOCARBSULF: A combined model for Phanerozoic atmospheric O₂ and CO₂. PDF file, Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta, 70: 5653-5664.

Robert A. Berner (2004): The Phanerozoic carbon cycle: CO₂ and O₂. In PDF, Oxford University Press.

! R.A. Berner and Z. Kothavala (2001): GEOCARB III: a revised model of atmospheric CO₂ over Phanerozoic time. In PDF, American Journal of Science, 301: 182-204. See also here.

Robert A. Berner, Department of Geology and Geophysics, Yale University, New Haven, CT: Atmospheric oxygen over Phanerozoic time. PNAS, Vol. 96, Issue 20, 10955-10957, September 28, 1999.

! Robert A. Berner (1990): Atmospheric carbon dioxide levels over Phanerozoic time. PDF file, Science.

Robert A. Berner, Department of Geology and Geophysics, Yale University, New Haven, CT: Atmospheric oxygen over Phanerozoic time. PNAS, Vol. 96, Issue 20, 10955-10957, September 28, 1999.

Robert A. Berner, Geology and Geophysics, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut: The Rise of Plants and Their Effect on Weathering and Atmospheric CO₂ (now via wayback archive). See also here, and there.

C.K. Boyce and M.A. Zwieniecki (2012): Leaf fossil record suggests limited influence of atmospheric CO₂ on terrestrial productivity prior to angiosperm evolution. In PDF, PNAS, 109.

Terry Boyce, The University of Hong Kong: The Evolution of the Atmosphere. Now via wayback archive.

David J. Des Marais: Palaeobiology: Sea change in sediments. Abstract, Nature 437, 826-827; 2005. Earth's oxygen levels and microbial "footprints".

Deutschlandfunk (a German radio station): An Sauerstoffmangel eingegangen. Easy to understand information about the Permian/Triassic mass extinction aftermath and thin air (with statements of Robert Berner, Robert Dudley, Raymond Huey, Peter Ward). In German. You can also listen to this article ("Audio on demand").

Earth Learning Idea (James Devon, London). Free PDF downloads for Earth-related teaching ideas. Go to:
Earth´s atmosphere - step by step evolution (in PDF). Using a physical model to show the development of our current atmosphere.

Encyclopaedia Britannica: evolution of the atmosphere.

! P.G. Falkowski et al. (2005): The rise of oxygen over the past 205 million years and the evolution of large placental mammals. PDF file, Science, 309. See also here (abstract). The overall increase in oxygen as a critical factor in the evolution, radiation, and subsequent increase in average size of placental mammals.

! P.G. Falkowski et al. (2000): The global carbon cycle: a test of our knowledge of earth as a system. PDF file, Science, 290.

B.J. Fletcher et al. (2008): Atmospheric carbon dioxide linked with Mesozoic and early Cenozoic climate change. In PDF, Nat. Geosci., 1: 43-48.

B.J. Fletcher et al. (2005): Fossil bryophytes as recorders of ancient CO₂ levels: Experimental evidence and a Cretaceous case study. In PDF.

! I.J. Glasspool and A.C. Scott 2010): Phanerozoic concentrations of atmospheric oxygen reconstructed from sedimentary charcoal. Abstract, Nature Geoscience, 3:627-630.

! J.B. Graham et al. (1995): Implications of the late Paleozoic oxygen pulse for physiology and evolution. In PDF.

W.A. Green (2010): The function of the aerenchyma in arborescent lycopsids: evidence of an unfamiliar metabolic strategy. PDF file, Proc. R. Soc., B, 277: 2257-2267.

! J.L. Grenfell et al. (2010): Co-evolution of atmospheres, life, and climate. PDF file, Astrobiology.

John Groves, Department of Earth Science, University of Northern Iowa: Oxygen & Evolution - A hot topic in paleobiology. Powerpoint presentation.

J.F. Harrison et al. (2010): Atmospheric oxygen level and the evolution of insect body size. In PDF, Proc. R. Soc., B, 277: 1937-1946.

James D. Hays, The Climate System: Early Earth and the Evolution of the Atmosphere. Comparison of Earth with its neighbor planets.

HEDGES, S. Blair, CHEN, Hsiong, WANG, Daniel, THOMPSON, Amanda S., KUMAR, Sudhir, and WATANABE, Hidemi, Earth System Processes - Global Meeting (June 24-28, 2001) Edinburgh: A GENOMIC TIMESCALE FOR THE RISE IN OXYGEN AND ORIGIN OF EUKARYOTES. An abstract.

R.B. Huey and P:D. Ward (2005): Climbing a triassic Mount Everest: Into thinner air. In PDF, JAMA-Journal of the American Medial Association, 294: 1761-1762.

C. Humphreys: Fossil bryophyte proxy contributes to palaeo-atmospheric CO₂ predictions. In PDF. See also here.

C. Humphreys: Literature Review: Abiotic and Biotic Influences on the Productivity of Early Land Plants. In PDF. See also here.

Tran T. Huynh and Christopher J. Poulsen (2005): Rising atmospheric CO₂ as a possible trigger for the end-Triassic mass extinction. PDF file, Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology, 217: 223-242.

! G.J. Jordan (2011): A critical framework for the assessment of biological palaeoproxies: predicting past climate and levels of atmospheric CO2 from fossil leaves. In PDF, New Phytologist.

JuJu Media, Science a GoGo: News, August 6, 200, Rocks Provide Clues To Origin Of Oxygen On Earth.

James F. Kasting, Department of Geosciences, Pennsylvania State University: The Rise of Atmospheric Oxygen. PDF file, Science 293, 2001.

! P. Kenrick et al. (2012): A timeline for terrestrialization: consequences for the carbon cycle in the Palaeozoic. In PDF, Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B, 367: 519-536.

! A.H. Knoll and H.D. Holland, Harvard University: Oxygen and Proterozoic Evolution: An Update. From:
NATIONAL ACADEMY PRESS, National Research Council, Washington, D.C.,1995: Effects of Past Global Change on Life.

! T.M. Lenton (2002): Chapter 3, The coupled evolution of life and atmospheric oxygen. PDF file, from Lynn J. Rothschild and Adrian M. Lister (eds.), Evolution Planet Earth.

D. Mauquoy et al. (2010): A protocol for plant macrofossil analysis of peat deposits. PDF file, Mires and Peat, 7.

The University of Michigan: Global Change, Physical Processes:
Global Change 1 Fall 2011 Schedule . Go to:
! Evolution of the Atmosphere: Composition, Structure and Energy.

The Plymouth State Meteorology Program Composition and Layers of the Atmosphere. A self guided tutorial. Go to: Evolution of the Atmosphere.

! W.M. Post et al. (1990): The global carbon cycle. In PDF, American Scientist.

! S.H. Pritchard et al. (1999): Elevated CO₂ and plant structure: a review. In PDF, Global Change Biology, 5: 807-837.

! G.J. Retallack (2001): A 300-million-year record of atmospheric carbon dioxide from fossil plant cuticles. In PDF, Nature. See also:
Supplementary Information for "A 300-million-year record of atmospheric carbon dioxide from fossil plant cuticles" Nature, V411, 287. They are measurements of stomatal index from fossil and living plants. Part 1 has reliable data, and Part 2 has data deemed statistically inadequate from a rarefaction analysis. Abbreviations include SI (stomatal index), Nf (number of fragments counted), Ns (number of stomates counted), Ne (number of epidermal cells counted), and Ma (millions of years ago).

E.A. Robinson et al. (2012): A meta-analytical review of the effects of elevated CO₂ on plant-arthropod interactions highlights the importance of interacting environmental and biological variables. In PDF, New Phytologist, 194: 321-336. See also here (abstract).

Dana L. Royer et al. (2007): Climate sensitivity constrained by CO₂ concentrations over the past 420 million years. PDF file, Nature, 446.

! Dana L. Royer et al. (2004): CO₂ as a primary driver of Phanerozoic climate. In PDF, GSA Today, 14: 1052-5173.

Dana L. Royer et al. (2001): Paleobotanical Evidence for Near Present-Day Levels of Atmospheric CO₂ During Part of the Tertiary. PDF file, Science, 292: 2310.

SciQuest.com: Geology, Evolution upset: Oxygen-making microbes came last, not first.

Andrew C. Scott and Ian J. Glasspool (2006): The diversification of Paleozoic fire systems and fluctuations in atmospheric oxygen concentration. PDF file, PNAS, 103: 10861-10865. See also here.

A.L. Sessions et al. (2009): The continuing puzzle of the great oxidation event. PDF file, Current Biology, 19: R567-R574.

Lee J. Siegel, Astrobiology Magazine: The Rise of Oxygen. See also here (PDF file).

SpaceDaily: NASA Scientists Propose New Theory of Earth's Early Evolution. The rise of oxygen.

V.J. Thannicka (2009): Oxygen in the evolution of complex life and the price we pay. Am. J. Respir. Cell Mol. Biol., 40: 507-510.

Kenneth M. Towe, Tennille, GA: The Problematic Rise of Archean Oxygen. Science 22, February 2002: Vol. 295. no. 5559, p. 1419.

D. Uhl et al. (2008): Permian and Triassic wildfires and atmospheric oxygen levels. PDF file.

University World News (August 08, 2010): New technique estimates past oxygen levels.

Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia:
! Oxygen evolution.
Earth's atmosphere.
Oxygen.
Great Oxygenation Event.
Carbon cycle.
Category:Atmosphere.

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