Climate

Reporting for NPR’s Morning Edition, Christopher Joyce features new work by Professor Daniel Rothman that indicates the world’s largest mass extinction may have been caused by microbes.

MIT researchers have found evidence that methane-producing microbes may have triggered the largest mass extinction in Earth’s history, reports Will Dunham for Reuters.

Nature reporter Chelsea Ward reports that a team from MIT led by Professor Daniel Rothman has found that, “Methane-belching microbes may have been behind the 'Great Dying', a mass-extinction event that wiped out some 90% of all species on Earth about 252 million years ago.”

The Guardian highlights new research by Professor Daniel Rothman that suggests microbes may be responsible for the end-Permian extinction. As reported by The Guardian, “Analysis of geological carbon deposits reveals a significant boost in levels of carbon-containing gases – either carbon dioxide or methane – at the time of the mass extinction.”