Fig. 4: Predicted chemical composition and utility for prebiotic chemistry of dust-rich sediments on early Earth.
From: Cosmic dust fertilization of glacial prebiotic chemistry on early Earth
a–d, Results are plotted for the absolute concentration of each element relative to the observed average concentration of emergent upper continental crust (UCC) on Earth, today33: phosphorus (a), sulfur (b), nitrogen (c) and carbon (d). The results were obtained using a modern-day dust flux of 10 t d−1 (ref. 27). In c, both oxidizing and reducing atmosphere scenarios are shown, due to the strong consequences for the survival of N-bearing organic molecules during entry under reducing conditions.
