Methane-eating Microbes Can Use Iron And Manganese Oxides To 'Breathe'
Thursday, July 9, 2009 - 14:35
in Earth & Climate
Iron and manganese compounds, in addition to sulfate, may play an important role in converting methane to carbon dioxide and eventually carbonates in the Earth's oceans, according researchers looking at anaerobic sediments. These same compounds may have been key to methane reduction in the early, oxygenless days of the planet's atmosphere.