News > Earth’s Early Magma Oceans Detected in 3.7 Billion Year-Old Greenland Rocks

Earth’s Early Magma Oceans Detected in 3.7 Billion Year-Old Greenland Rocks

We knew Greenland would be a good place to search for these traces of Earth’s molten past. Our samples originate from the Isua supracrustal belt in southwestern Greenland, which is a famous area for geologists. At first glance, Isua’s rocks look just like any modern basalt you’d find on the sea floor. But these rocks some of the oldest in the world, believed to be between 3.7 and 3.8 billion years old.

On analysing Isua’s rocks, we discovered unique iron isotope signatures.