Journal article
Neoproterozoic syn-glacial carbonate precipitation and implications for a snowball Earth
AVS Hood, DE Penman, MA Lechte, MW Wallace, JA Giddings, NJ Planavsky
Geobiology | WILEY | Published : 2022
DOI: 10.1111/gbi.12470
Abstract
The Neoproterozoic ‘snowball Earth’ hypothesis suggests that a runaway ice–albedo feedback led to two intense glaciations around 717–635 million years ago, and this global ice cover would have drastically impacted biogeochemical cycles. Testing the predictions of this hypothesis against the rock record is key to understanding Earth’s surface evolution in the Neoproterozoic. A central tenet of the snowball Earth hypothesis is that extremely high atmospheric CO2 levels—supplied by volcanic degassing over millions of years—would be required to overcome a strong ice–albedo feedback and trigger deglaciation. This requires severely diminished continental weathering (and associated CO2 drawdown) du..
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Awarded by National Aeronautics and Space Administration
Funding Acknowledgements
The authors acknowledge the Adnyamathanha people, who are the traditional owners of the land where we undertook fieldwork. We would like to thank Warwick family of Holowilena South who have kindly allowed access to their property for research over many years. We also thank Brennan O'Connell for assistance during fieldwork; Rain Song for discussion and Russell Drysdale for isotope work. We would like to thank the editor, Kurt Konhauser, as well as Linda Kah and two anonymous reviewers, whose comments improved the manuscript. A.H. acknowledges funding from an ARC DECRA DE190100988; and M.W. and A.H were also supported by ARC DP210103715. NJP acknowledges funding from the NASA Alternative Earths Astrobiology Institute.