A study published today in Nature reveals that Earth's first crust, formed about 4.5 billion years ago, probably had chemical features remarkably like today's continental crust.
© Macquarie UniversityMeteor bombardment: Early Earth was bombarded by meteors which played a crucial role in disrupting and recycling Earth’s first crust.
Professor Emeritus Simon Turner from the Faculty of Science and Engineering at Macquarie University led the study, which included researchers from around Australia and the UK and France.
"This discovery has major implications for how we think about Earth's earliest history," says Professor Turner.
"Scientists have long thought that tectonic plates needed to dive beneath each other to create the chemical fingerprint we see in continents.
"Our research shows this fingerprint existed in Earth's very first crust, the protocrust - meaning those theories need to be reconsidered."
