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Abstract

Summary

The Cryogenian (720-635 Ma) Snowball Earth glaciations, which froze the surface of the Earth’s oceans down to the tropics, have long been speculated to have had a dramatic impact on the global biosphere and the evolution of life. Here we present a composite lipid biomarker stratigraphy from newly discovered Cryogenian-aged outcrops in Oman, along with new lipid biomarker data from pre-Snowball (late Tonian) strata for comparison. Our data set encompasses the first pristine biomarker records garnered through the deposition and aftermath of Sturtian cap carbonate deposits in Oman (ca. 660 Ma), leading up to the younger Marinoan glaciation event (terminating at ca. 635 Ma). Additionally, environmental redox and nutrient availability controls on biomarker distributions, were investigated by combining organic and inorganic geochemical methods to yield detailed chemostratigraphic records for Cryogenian Snowball Earth events. Clear first order secular changes were found for steroid distributions, as well as for the environmental abundance of eukaryotes relative to bacteria and archaea. The climatic and environmental upheaval associated with the Cryogenian Snowball Earth appears to have exerted a major influence on the evolution and diversification of complex life.

© EAGE Publications BV
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/content/papers/10.3997/2214-4609.202533164
2025-09-07
2026-02-14

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