PRIMORDIAL SOUP THEORY

Could life really have started in a warm little pond?

VOLCANIC ORIGINS

Earth’s early atmosphere was a hot mixture of carbon, nitrogen and hydrogen-containing chemicals like carbon dioxide, methane and ammonia. There was no oxygen, and violent volcanic eruptions threw dust and ash into the air, creating rocky islands in the ocean.

A SPARK

The heat of the Sun, the impact of asteroids and the arcing electricity of lightning acted as catalysts. They triggered the production of hydrogen cyanide, which dissolved into pools of water on the ground.