加州大学河滨分校地质学家Andrey Bekker领导的研究团队通过分析南非古岩石，揭示了地球23亿年前如何通过海洋中的磷循环形成自我维持的反馈机制，使大气氧含量保持充足1。这项研究发表在《自然通讯》期刊，于2026年10月12日发布1。
研究人员创新性地分离了不同矿物中的磷，区分了生物可利用的磷和被矿物锁定的磷1。研究表明，氧化微生物利用硫酸盐分解有机物并释放磷，这增加了海洋生物的生产力，导致更多有机碳埋藏于海底沉积物，最终促进了大气氧含量的持续积累1。Bekker指出："生物没有磷无法正常生长或发挥功能。一旦海洋中磷的供应增加，就能使更多有机碳被埋藏。这一过程的附带效应是大气中氧气持续释放1。"
研究还发现，大气氧含量可能经历了比预期更剧烈的波动1。研究团队指出，气候变化导致的海洋缺氧可能会破坏磷循环，减少海洋生物可利用的磷1。
Researchers from the University of California, Riverside have identified a self-sustaining feedback system in ancient oceans that kept Earth's atmosphere oxygen-rich over billions of years.1 The discovery, published in Nature Communications on October 12, 2026, examines phosphorus cycling in 2.3-billion-year-old rocks from South Africa.1
Led by geologist Andrey Bekker, the team found that oxidizing microorganisms broke down organic matter using sulfate, releasing phosphorus that increased biological productivity in the oceans.1 This process led to more organic carbon being buried in seafloor sediments, which in turn promoted sustained oxygen accumulation in the atmosphere.1 According to Bekker, "Living things cannot grow or function properly without phosphorus. Once more of it became available in the oceans, it allowed more organic carbon to be buried. A side effect of that process is that more oxygen continued to be released into the atmosphere."1
The researchers employed an innovative methodology to distinguish between phosphorus available to marine organisms and phosphorus locked within minerals.1 Their findings suggest that atmospheric oxygen levels may have experienced more dramatic fluctuations than previously understood.1 The research carries modern implications as well: ocean deoxygenation caused by climate change could disrupt phosphorus cycling and reduce the availability of this crucial nutrient to marine life.1
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