© Georgia Tech / Allison Carter
This tiger eye BIF (banded iron formation) rock shows layers of iron that settled as compounds out of oceanic solution. Before oxygen became more plentiful, the oceans were likely full of iron that could have made nitrous oxide that entered Earth's early atmosphere to keep it warm.
More than an eon ago, the sun shone dimmer than it does today, but the Earth stayed warm due to a strong greenhouse gas effect, geoscience theory holds. Astronomer Carl Sagan coined this "the Faint Young Sun Paradox," and for decades, researchers have searched for the right balance of atmospheric gases that could have kept early Earth cozy.
A new study led by the Georgia Institute of Technology suggests that nitrous oxide, known for its use as the dental sedative laughing gas, may have played a significant role.
The research team carried out experiments and atmospheric computer modeling that in detail substantiated an existing hypothesis about the presence of nitrous oxide (N2O), a powerful greenhouse gas, in the ancient atmosphere. Established research has already pointed to high levels of carbon dioxide and methane, but they may not have been plentiful enough to sufficiently keep the globe warm without the help of N2O.
Comment: Now why would Russia be doing this now? Are they aware of un-publicized threats?