A large team of chemists at Harvard University has found evidence that cloud-to-ground lightning strikes may have played a key role in generating building blocks for life on Earth.
In their study, published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, the researchers set up an experiment to mimic early Earth conditions and simulated lightning strikes in air, water, and land replicas. They then analyzed the products formed as a result of these strikes, focusing on those that ended up in the water.
The results showed that carbon and nitrogen were converted into molecules that could have been part of early building blocks. For example, carbon was turned into carbon monoxide and formic acid, while nitrogen became nitrite, nitrate, and ammonium.
To further test their theory, the researchers added minerals similar to those found in rocks on early Earth to their simulated environment and repeated the lightning strikes and analysis. They found that sulfide minerals were generated, similar to those often found near volcanic eruptions. Additionally, they saw an increase in ammonia creation, which is necessary for life on Earth.
The team suggests that their findings support the idea that cloud-to-ground lightning strikes would have been more likely to create building blocks for life on Earth than comets, asteroids, or cloud-to-cloud lightning strikes.
Source: https://phys.org/news/2024-07-cloud-ground-lightning-generated-blocks.html