Proliferation of oxygen oases in Mesoarchean oceans

Abstract Oxygenic photosynthesis played an essential role in the accumulation of free oxygen (O2) at Earth’s surface, but questions persist regarding its evolutionary timeline. Manganese (Mn)-rich sedimentary rocks from the Mesoarchean Pongola Supergroup in South Africa have been invoked among the earliest evidence for O2-dependent Mn(II) oxidation and thus photosynthetic O2 production in oceans. However, as a singular suite of rocks, uncertainties persist about whether the evidence for O2 in the Pongola region has global implications. Here we report on another Mesoarchean Mn-rich iron formation in South China, dating back to ca. 2.88–2.80 Ga. The Dianzihe iron formation exhibits a positive correlation between Mn enrichment (MnO up to 7.08 wt%, Fe/Mn ratio down to 5.1) and negative δ56Fe values (−0.21 to −1.33‰; average = −0.91‰). This pattern requires oxygenated seawater (i.e., O2 > 10 μM) at least to the seafloor, allowing not only for the oxidation of Fe(II) and Mn(II) but also for the preservation of Fe(Mn) oxyhydroxides until post-depositional modifications. Based on our findings in China alongside the distribution of Mn-rich iron formations in South Africa, we posit that a global distribution of oxygen oases, driven by cyanobacterial O2 production, already existed in the Mesoarchean.