Meteorites smacking into the early Earth could have created warm, watery environments favorable to primordial life. A new study of an impact crater in Finland suggests that such hydrothermal activity could have lasted up to 1.6 million years — at least 10 times longer than theory suggested, providing plenty of time for life to emerge and spread.
Log in
Subscribers, enter your e-mail address for full access to the Science News archives and digital editions.