Life on Earth rests on a knife-edge of chemistry that could easily have tipped the other way. As geochemists reconstruct the planet’s birth, they are finding that a narrow band of oxygen conditions ...

Life on Earth may exist thanks to an incredible stroke of luck — a chemical sweet spot that most planets miss during their ...

The new plot twist is that in order to keep enough nitrogen and phosphorus near its surface, a planet has to start out with ...

New method reveals chemical signs of early microbial life in ancient Earth rocks, showing photosynthesis evolved much earlier than believed.

We all know Earth is special, but we may not fully appreciate how good we have it on this planet. Unlike its planetary neighbors, Earth has remained habitable for billions of years thanks to a ...

Life on Earth has long been understood to run on two main energy sources. One comes from sunlight, captured by photosynthesis. The other comes from chemical reactions, such as microbes feeding on ...

The experts can use these findings in their search for life on exoplanets with similar chemical profiles.

We all know Earth is special, but we may not fully appreciate how good we have it on this planet. Unlike its planetary neighbors, Earth has remained habitable for billions of years thanks to a ...