Objective
The appearance of microbial life on Earth is manifested by stromatolites in ~3.5 billion year (Ga) old marine sediments in Pilbara, Australia. The processes involved in the mineralisation and preservation of these earliest signatures of life remain incompletely understood. It has been observed that the stromatolites are mineralised by several generations of carbonate and silica phases, but when and how the different cement phases formed is under debate. Knowing the time and conditions of mineralisation of the stromatolites is necessary to evaluate whether the cements represent primary phases truly indicative of past environmental conditions or a post-depositional overprint. As some of the mineral phases have been suggested to represent reliable archives of ancient Pilbara seawater, they can be used to reconstruct the habitats of the earliest life on Earth.
The goal of project ELEMIN is to reconstruct the syn- and post-depositional history of the Pilbara stromatolites and differentiate between primary and later-stage carbonate/silica mineral phases. High-resolution petrographic methods, such as electron backscatter diffraction mapping, in combination with radiometric isotope dating will be applied to date individual mineral phases and to identify pristine mineral phases that were directly precipitated from seawater ~3.5 Ga ago.
Trace elements and neodymium isotope compositions of these pristine mineral phases yield detailed insights into the local physico-chemical conditions prevailing at the site of stromatolite growth, such as redox conditions and the source(s) of elements dissolved in Pilbara seawater. Both proxies trace the origin of elements to either continental weathering or to submarine hydrothermal systems. This distinction is essential as it allows us to evaluate contrasting models for early life, suggesting either a peculiar ocean chemistry or submarine hydrothermal systems as the cradle of life.
Fields of science (EuroSciVoc)
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
- humanities history and archaeology history
- natural sciences chemical sciences inorganic chemistry inorganic compounds
- natural sciences physical sciences astronomy planetary sciences planets
- natural sciences earth and related environmental sciences oceanography ocean chemistry
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Programme(s)
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
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H2020-EU.1.3. - EXCELLENT SCIENCE - Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions
MAIN PROGRAMME
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H2020-EU.1.3.2. - Nurturing excellence by means of cross-border and cross-sector mobility
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Topic(s)
Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
Funding Scheme
Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
MSCA-IF-EF-ST - Standard EF
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Call for proposal
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
(opens in new window) H2020-MSCA-IF-2016
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Net EU financial contribution. The sum of money that the participant receives, deducted by the EU contribution to its linked third party. It considers the distribution of the EU financial contribution between direct beneficiaries of the project and other types of participants, like third-party participants.
1010 WIEN
Austria
The total costs incurred by this organisation to participate in the project, including direct and indirect costs. This amount is a subset of the overall project budget.