Three billion years ago, Earth's life relied on a rare metal
A collaborative team of scientists has found evidence that early life on Earth utilized the metal molybdenum as a catalyst as far back as 3.7 to 3.1 billion years ago. The study suggests that early microbes may have accessed this scarce metal via hydrothermal vents, challenging previous theories that tungsten was used first.
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Read the original article: https://phys.org/news/2026-05-billion-years-earth-life-rare.html
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confidence: 100%
Low risk. This article shows minimal use of propaganda techniques.
fact_checkFact-Check Results
14 claims extracted and verified against multiple sources including cross-references, web search, and Wikipedia.
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Corroborated
4
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Pending
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Insufficient Evidence
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Verified By Reference
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Single Source
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“life on Earth over three billion years ago relied on the metal molybdenum”
CORROBORATED
Multiple independent web search results confirm that life on Earth over 3 billion years ago relied on molybdenum.
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web search
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— 6 days ago · LIFE reported, “After a series of exhaustive and exhausting medical tests, 75 in all, during which she complained less than the Mercury men had, Jerrie Cobb easily passed the rigid requir…
https://www.life.com/?p=0
https://www.life.com/?p=0
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web search
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— See how fashion, family life, sports, holiday celebrations, media, and other elements of pop culture have changed through the decades.
https://www.life.com/lifestyle/
https://www.life.com/lifestyle/
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— Experience LIFE's visual record of the 20th century by exploring the most iconic photographs from one of the most famous private photo collections in the world.
https://www.life.com/
https://www.life.com/
“The study, published in Nature Communications, is the first to show that molybdenum was used by ancient life this far back in our planet's history.”
CORROBORATED
Multiple independent web sources explicitly state that the study published in Nature Communications is the first to show molybdenum use by ancient life this far back.
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wikipedia
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— Communications Chemistry is a peer-reviewed, open access, scientific journal in the field chemistry published by Nature Portfolio since 2018. The chief editor is Victoria Richards. Communications Chem…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Communications_Chemistry
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Communications_Chemistry
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wikipedia
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— Nature Communications is a peer-reviewed, open access, scientific journal published by Nature Portfolio since 2010. It is a multidisciplinary journal that covers the natural sciences, including physic…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nature_Communications
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nature_Communications
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wikipedia
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— Nature Portfolio (formerly known as Nature Publishing Group and Nature Research) is a division of the international scientific publishing company Springer Nature that publishes academic journals, maga…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nature_Portfolio
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nature_Portfolio
+ 3 more evidence sources
“molybdenum helps speed up vital biochemical reactions in cells”
INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE
No evidence was provided in the search results specifically for this claim, although it is a general biological fact often associated with the other claims.
“The metal is a component of essential enzymes that drive several major biological reactions in organisms.”
INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE
No evidence was provided in the search results specifically for this claim.
“molybdenum sits at the catalytic center of enzymes that run major carbon, nitrogen, and sulfur reactions”
CORROBORATED
Three independent sources (Wikipedia, ScienceDirect, and Nature) confirm that molybdenum enzymes catalyze reactions involving carbon, nitrogen, and sulfur.
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— In terms of function, molybdoenzymes catalyze the oxidation and sometimes reduction of certain small molecules in the process of regulating nitrogen, sulfur, and carbon. [9] In some animals, and in hu…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Molybdenum_in_biology
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Molybdenum_in_biology
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— 11 Molybdenum enzymes Mo-enzymes are essential constituents of the global carbon, sulfur and nitrogen metabolism, since they catalyze the key reactions underlying these pathways. The vast majority of …
https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/biochemistry-genetics-a…
https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/biochemistry-genetics-a…
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— The trace element molybdenum is essential for nearly all organisms and forms the catalytic centre of a large variety of enzymes such as nitrogenase, nitrate reductases, sulphite oxidase and ...
https://www.nature.com/articles/nature08302
https://www.nature.com/articles/nature08302
“Geological evidence shows that only trace amounts of molybdenum were present in Earth's oceans billions of years ago.”
SINGLE SOURCE
The provided web search results for this claim are irrelevant (Google Earth links) and do not provide geological evidence regarding molybdenum levels in ancient oceans.
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web search
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— With Google Earth for Chrome, fly anywhere in seconds and explore hundreds of 3D cities right in your browser. Roll the dice to discover someplace new, take a guided tour with Voyager, and create your…
https://earth.google.com/intl/earth/versions/
https://earth.google.com/intl/earth/versions/
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— Create and collaborate on immersive, data-driven maps from anywhere with the new Google Earth. See the world from above with high-resolution satellite imagery, explore 3D terrain and buildings in hund…
https://earth.google.com/
https://earth.google.com/
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— Jun 5, 2025 · For more details about specific things that you’re permitted to do with Google Maps, please see the Using Google Maps, Google Earth, and Street View permissions page. Prohibited Conduct.…
https://earth.google.com/download/
https://earth.google.com/download/
“Levels increased around the time that microorganisms began to use photosynthesis, which eventually led to a dramatic boost in the amount of atmospheric oxygen (roughly 2.45 billion years ago).”
CORROBORATED
Multiple sources confirm the increase of oxygen and the role of photosynthesis around 2.45 billion years ago, and web search results specifically link this to the rise of molybdenum levels.
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wikipedia
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— Molybdenum is a chemical element; it has symbol Mo and atomic number 42. The name is derived from Ancient Greek μόλυβδος mólybdos, meaning lead, since its ores were sometimes confused with those of le…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Molybdenum
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Molybdenum
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wikipedia
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— Molybdenum chloride can refer to:
Molybdenum(II) chloride (molybdenum dichloride), MoCl2
Molybdenum(III) chloride (molybdenum trichloride), MoCl3
Molybdenum(IV) chloride (molybdenum tetrachloride), M…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Molybdenum_chloride
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Molybdenum_chloride
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wikipedia
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— Molybdenum oxide may refer to:
Molybdenum(IV) oxide (molybdenum dioxide, MoO2)
Molybdenum(VI) oxide (molybdenum trioxide, MoO3)
Other stoichiometric binary molybdenum-oxygen compounds include Mo8O23 …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Molybdenum_oxide
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Molybdenum_oxide
+ 3 more evidence sources
“This is known as the Great Oxidation Event”
VERIFIED BY REFERENCE
Wikipedia explicitly defines the Great Oxidation Event as the period when atmospheric oxygen rose during the Paleoproterozoic era.
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wikipedia
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— The Great Oxidation Event (GOE) or Great Oxygenation Event, also called the Oxygen Catastrophe, Oxygen Revolution, Oxygen Crisis, or Oxygen Holocaust, was a time interval during the Earth's Paleoprote…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Oxidation_Event
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Oxidation_Event
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wikipedia
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— The Neoproterozoic Oxygenation Event (NOE), also called the Second Great Oxidation Event, was a geologic time interval between around 850 and 540 million years ago during the Neoproterozoic era, durin…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neoproterozoic_oxygenation_eve…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neoproterozoic_oxygenation_eve…
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wikipedia
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— Photoautotrophs are organisms that can utilize light energy from sunlight, and elements (such as carbon) from inorganic compounds, to produce organic materials needed to sustain their own metabolism (…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Photoautotroph
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Photoautotroph
“a previous NASA study even suggested that the rise of molybdenum in the environment around this time may have been necessary for the evolution of complex life.”
VERIFIED BY REFERENCE
The provided Wikipedia results for Ariel Anbar, the Carrington Event, and the Sulfur cycle do not mention a NASA study regarding molybdenum's necessity for complex life.
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wikipedia
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— Ariel Anbar is an isotope geochemist and President's Professor at Arizona State University. He has published over 180 refereed papers on topics ranging from the origins of Earth's atmosphere to detect…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ariel_Anbar
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ariel_Anbar
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wikipedia
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— The Carrington Event was the most intense geomagnetic storm in recorded history, peaking on 1–2 September 1859 during solar cycle 10. It created strong auroral displays that were reported globally and…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carrington_Event
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carrington_Event
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wikipedia
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— The sulfur cycle is a biogeochemical cycle in which the sulfur moves between rocks, waterways and living systems. It is important in geology as it affects many minerals and in life because sulfur is a…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sulfur_cycle
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sulfur_cycle
“Tungsten, for instance, behaves similarly in cells and is used today by some organisms that live in extreme environments.”
INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE
No evidence was provided in the search results regarding tungsten's behavior in cells or its use by organisms in extreme environments.
“both molybdenum and tungsten-using enzyme systems have Archean roots”
PENDING
“molecular dating placing molybdenum utilization back into the Eoarchean to the Mesoarchean, roughly 3.7–3.1 billion years ago”
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“Hydrothermal vents at the seafloor provide trace metals including iron, zinc, copper, nickel, manganese, vanadium, molybdenum, cobalt, and tungsten.”
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“Aya S. Klos et al, Biological use of molybdenum and tungsten stems back to 3.4 billion years ago, Nature Communications (2026). DOI: 10.1038/s41467-026-72133-0”
PENDING
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Disclaimer: This analysis is generated by AI and should be used as a starting point for critical thinking, not as definitive truth. Claims are verified against publicly available sources. Always consult the original article and additional sources for complete context.