EVERYDAY SCIENCE

Detailed explanation-1: -Cyanobacteria then went a step further: they started to utilise water during photosynthesis, releasing oxygen as a by-product. Over time, enough oxygen accumulated in Earth’s atmosphere to allow for the evolution of oxygen-metabolising organisms.

Detailed explanation-2: -Before about 2.4 billion years ago, Earth was a virtually oxygen-free environment. The appearance of cyanobacteria, or blue-green algae, changed all that. Cyanobacteria injected the atmosphere with oxygen, setting the scene for the development of complex life as we know it.

Detailed explanation-3: -These microbes possessed the remarkable ability to perform photosynthesis, (i.e., they could generate energy from sunlight). Cyanobacteria possessed the machinery to utilize water as a fuel source by oxidizing it. More significantly, the by-product of photosynthesis happened to be oxygen.

Detailed explanation-4: -Did you know that 20% of the oxygen we breathe comes from the ocean? Tiny bacteria called prochlorococcus are hard at work turning carbon dioxide into the oxygen we breathe through photosynthesis.

Detailed explanation-5: -Nearer the ground, the presence of breathable oxygen (O2) opened a door to the evolution of whole new forms of life. One of the enduring marvels of life on Earth is that, by producing oxygen, the earliest organisms created conditions that enabled subsequent, more complex forms of life to thrive.