@article{5752652d52be496a9f4200e423756db9,
title = "Two-billion-year-old evaporites capture Earth's great oxidation",
abstract = "Major changes in atmospheric and ocean chemistry occurred in the Paleoproterozoic era (2.5 to 1.6 billion years ago). Increasing oxidation dramatically changed Earth's surface, but few quantitative constraints exist on this important transition. This study describes the sedimentology, mineralogy, and geochemistry of a 2-billion-year-old, ∼800-meterthick evaporite succession from the Onega Basin in Russian Karelia. The deposit consists of a basal unit dominated by halite (∼100 meters) followed by units dominated by anhydrite-magnesite (∼500 meters) and dolomite-magnesite (∼200 meters). The evaporite minerals robustly constrain marine sulfate concentrations to at least 10 millimoles per kilogram of water, representing an oxidant reservoir equivalent to more than 20% of the modern ocean-atmosphere oxidizing capacity. These results show that substantial amounts of surface oxidant accumulated during this critical transition in Earth's oxygenation.",
author = "Bl{\"a}ttler, {C. L.} and Claire, {M. W.} and Prave, {A. R.} and K. Kirsim{\"a}e and Higgins, {J. A.} and Medvedev, {P. V.} and Romashkin, {A. E.} and Rychanchik, {D. V.} and Zerkle, {A. L.} and K. Paiste and T. Kreitsmann and Millar, {I. L.} and Hayles, {J. A.} and H. Bao and Turchyn, {A. V.} and Warke, {M. R.} and A. Lepland",
note = "Funding Information: Thanks to T. H. Bui for assistance with sulfur isotope analyses and B. A. Wing for helpful discussions. This work was supported by a grant from the Simons Foundation (SCOL 339006 to C.L.B.) and by the European Research Council (ERC Horizon 2020 grant 678812 to M.C.), the Research Council of Norway (RCN Centres of Excellence funding scheme project 223259 to K.P. and A.L.), the Estonian Science Agency (PUT696 to K.K., A.L., K.P., and T.K.), and Princeton University (to J.A.H.). Core material from the OPH is maintained by the Institute of Geology, Karelian Research Centre, Petrozavodsk, Russia. Data presented in this study are available in the supplementary materials. Publisher Copyright: {\textcopyright} 2017 The Authors, some rights reserved.",
year = "2018",
month = apr,
day = "20",
doi = "10.1126/science.aar2687",
language = "English (US)",
volume = "360",
pages = "320--323",
journal = "Science",
issn = "0036-8075",
publisher = "American Association for the Advancement of Science",
number = "6386",
}