Experts Discover Ancient Life Locked Inside a 2.5 Billion-Year-Old Ruby as a Residue

Experts concluded that graphite was an ancient living matter based on the carbon atoms inside it.

BY SOMDATTA MAITY
PUBLISHED JAN 24, 2025



Ruby and Kyanite (Representative Cover Image Source: Wikimedia Commons | Photo by StrangerThanKindness)

In 2021 inside an opulent gemstone, researchers found evidence of ancient life. The gemstone in question was a 2.5 billion-year-old ruby from Greenland, the University of Waterloo stated. Researchers observed that the ruby sample contained graphite, a mineral made out of pure carbon. Further examination proved that the mineral was a remnant of ancient life. Findings regarding the ruby were published in Ore Geology Reviews and Chemical Geology.



Picture of Ruby (Representative Image Source: Wikimedia Commons/Photo by Robert M. Lavinsky)

The research team traveled to southwest Greenland to find the conditions required for ruby formation. They specifically chose the Archean North Atlantic Craton because it hosted the oldest known deposits of the gemstone. The research team was delighted to have such a rare discovery on their hands. "The graphite inside this ruby is really unique. It’s the first time we’ve seen evidence of ancient life in ruby-bearing rocks," said Chris Yakymchuk, professor of Earth and Environmental Sciences at Waterloo. "The presence of graphite also gives us more clues to determine how rubies formed at this location, something that is impossible to do directly based on a ruby’s color and chemical composition.”

Experts concluded that graphite was an ancient living matter based on the carbon atoms inside it. Examination through isotopic composition revealed that 98 percent of all carbon atoms in the graphite had a mass of 12 atomic units. Living matter is always more likely to take up lighter carbon atoms because of energy concerns. Hence, researchers asserted that the graphite was the remnant of an ancient living matter. A few carbon atoms that comprised the two percent had a mass of 13 or 14 atomic mass units.

"Living matter preferentially consists of the lighter carbon atoms because they take less energy to incorporate into cells," explained Yakymchuk. "Based on the increased amount of carbon-12 in this graphite, we concluded that the carbon atoms were once ancient life, most likely dead microorganisms such as cyanobacteria."

Researchers also claimed that the living matter was necessary for the survival of ruby. The graphite influenced the chemical composition of surrounding rocks, creating a favorable environment for the ruby to thrive. According to the analysis done by researchers, in the absence of the living matter, that particular region could not have hosted rubies. The rock where the ancient living matter has been found was determined to be somewhere around 2.5 billion years old. At that time, oxygen was not abundant in the atmosphere, with microorganisms and algae films being the only life forms on Earth.

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