Possible earliest traces of life
Microscopic iron tubes in Quebec may be the oldest fossils on Earth — or may not be fossils at all.
- When
- Known to
- ± 250 million years
- Era
- Hadean
Hematite filaments and tubes in the Nuvvuagittuq greenstone belt closely resemble structures made today by microbes at hydrothermal vents. The rocks are dated between 3.77 and possibly 4.28 billion years, which would make these the earliest known evidence of life anywhere. Both the age and the biological interpretation are disputed: the geology is complex and comparable shapes can form without life. It is recorded here as a contested claim, not a settled fact.