How Ancient Volcanoes Helped Create the Air We Breathe Today

Learn more about how complex life on Earth likely wouldn’t have been possible without volcanic activity.

By Stephanie Edwards
Mar 10, 2025 9:15 PMMar 10, 2025 10:15 PM
Erupting Volcano
(Image Credit: fboudrias/Shutterstock)

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We all depend on oxygen to survive, but about 3 billion years ago, there was barely any oxygen at all. When was the last time you thought about where all the oxygen on Earth came from?

A research team from the University of Tokyo’s Department of Earth and Planetary Science thinks about this question all of the time. In a newly published study in Communications Earth & Environment, the team reveals that we may have volcanoes to thank for the abundance of air that we breathe. 

A Volcanic Discovery

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