Life on Earth is 3.5 billion years old, confirms scientists

New Delhi : As researchers got their hands on a fossil 3.5 billion year old, they confirmed that it is a significant proof of existence of life on our planet since the time.

There have been several debates over the oldest fossil ever found over existence of life; all arguments came to rest on December 18 when Paleobiologists revealed findings from their latest study.

Their latest findings, in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, confirmed the existence of bacteria and microbes nearly 3.5 billion years ago, possibly living on a planet without oxygen.

The research, led by paleobiologist William Schopf of the University of California-Los Angeles and geoscientist John Valley of the University of Wisconsin-Madison, has been in the works for what seems a long time to most, but which the academics know is merely a blink of the eye in terms of life on Earth.

Many years of study, debate, and work have confirmed the earlier claim that life on Earth originated very, very, very long ago, or so the researchers believe. “I think it’s settled,” Valley said in a University of Wisconsin statement on the study. “These are a primitive but diverse group of organisms.”