Co-Evolution of Life and Surface Environments Linked to Plate Tectonics and Mantle Evolution

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Life and surface environments co-evolved in symbiotic tandem: biological changes modified surface environments; in turn, independent changes in surface conditions triggered biological innovations. Superimposed on this complex relationship is the long-term control by plate tectonics and episodic perturbations by short-lived mantle plume events. If we want to understand Earth's evolution in the past and predict future global long-term changes, we should explore how the Earth's System behaved during transient periods between long-lasting, steady states. Capitalizing on my long-term involvement with early Earth's evolution, I will focus my own and my group's research for the next funding cycle on the key events and time intervals in the Earth's history to address remaining uncertainties about the evolution of surface environments.