Earth’s surface environment hosts large reservoirs of hydrogen (H, mainly in the form of water, H2O), nitrogen (in atmospheric N2) and carbon (mainly in carbonate rocks). H, N and C are sometimes called “volatile” elements, or simply “volatiles,” by geoscientists because many of the simple compounds they form are gases at standard temperature and pressure. However, the distribution of these volatiles on Earth is skewed relative to their abundance in the materials Earth is thought to have formed. These volatile elements are major components of the atmosphere and oceans and key elements for life; thus, understanding the origin of Earth’s volatile composition is crucial for understanding how Earth developed a habitable environment. A new study led by Haruka Sakuraba of Tokyo Institute of Technology and Hiroyuki Kurokawa of the Earth-Life Science Institute (ELSI) at Tokyo Institute of Technology shows how dramatic events during Earth’s formation process itself can account for these observations.
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Source: Phys.org