Scientists Believe They Have Uncovered Why Bizzare Creatures Appeared on Earth Over 500 Million Years Ago

Scientists have recently discovered that, exactly 500 million years ago, the Earth was experiencing a far weaker magnetic field than it does today. And they believe that it was the weakened field that gave birth to life as we know it. 

The magnetic field extends from the Earth’s inner core out into space. It affects the planet’s oceans, atmosphere and chemical makeup. Its strength can vary, but the intensity, or lack thereof, can drastically change the way Earth looks, feels and functions. 

They have been able to study the changes in the Earth’s magnetic field over time through the analysis of crystals preserved in rocks. 

According to their research, two billion years ago, the field was as strong as it is today. And from rocks in Brazil, they know that it was 30 times weaker 591 million years ago than it is today.

A study released in the Communications Earth & Environment journal explained that there was an intense heat half a billion years ago that melted the Earth’s inner core. This led to a shift in the force of the magnetic field, which changed the temperature and elements of the planet’s water and air. 

“But in the Ediacaran, we had a fascinating period in the development of the deep Earth when processes creating the magnetic field had become so inefficient after billions of years that the field almost completely collapsed,” he said 

The discovery of a progressive weakening of Earth’s magnetic field also helped geologists better understand the long-standing mystery of how Earth’s inner core was formed. 

“The magnetosphere shields the Earth from solar wind, thus holding the atmosphere to the Earth. Thus, a weaker magnetosphere means that lighter gases such as hydrogen would be lost from the Earth’s atmosphere,” said Xiao. 

Scientists now believe that this phenomenon could have and likely did directly cause the evolution of life into what it is today.

For more than one billion years, these organisms were the only life on Earth. That is, until 500 million years ago, when a new kind of being emerged. 

It’s when the very first multi-celled animals were born. At this time, weird and unusual animals such as tubes, slugs, and discs such as Dickinsonia began populating the ocean’s floors, and they began populating. 

However, they now believe that it was the weakened magnetic field that allowed for the excess of oxygen needed for such a drastic evolutionary jump, and this is what lead to a hastened evolution of animals.  

“We do not challenge that one or more of these processes was happening concurrently. But the weak field may have allowed oxygenation to cross a threshold, aiding animal radiation (evolution).”

Therefore, the increase in oxygen in water and air due to the weakened magnetic field either aided in or completely allowed for the evolution of complex life. 

However, the period eventually ended, and an intense drop in temperature allowed the Earth’s core to solidify again and increase the strength of the magnetic field. 

“And by the time we get to the Ediacaran, the field is on its last legs. It’s almost collapsing. But then, fortunately for us it got cool enough that the inner core started to generate (strengthening the magnetic field).” he said.

“We do not challenge that one or more of these processes was happening concurrently. But the weak field may have allowed oxygenation to cross a threshold, aiding animal radiation (evolution),” Tarduno said.

The small slug and disc-like animals that were born during the Ediacaran period died off, and the first vertebrates and modern-day fish emerged. 

Several experts in the field, such as Peter Driscoll, have shared their opinion on Tarduno’s work and are uncertain if there’s any true validity to his claim. 

 He told CNN, “It is hard for me to evaluate the veracity of this claim because the influence that planetary magnetic fields might have on climate is not very well understood.”

However, he admits that it could take several decades of in-depth research as little is known about the animals that lived during the Ediacaran and Cambrian periods.

Studies such as these can help us understand the phases of the planet, including its many drastic changes that occur over time. Hopefully, with the advancement of science and technology, we may be able to finally grasp what happened in the past and maybe even what will happen in the future. 

“The observations appear to support the claim that the inner core first nucleated soon after this time, pushing the geodynamo (the mechanism that creates the magnetic field) from a weak, unstable state into a strong, stable dipolar field,” Driscoll said.

The mysterious and downright bizarre animals that appeared during the Ediacaran period all but disappeared, and were replaced by a diversity of new animals formed in a relatively short period of time.