Magnetic Susceptibility as a Biosignature

摘要

INTRODUCTION One of the goals of geobiology is to understand the early evolution of life by examining the nature of the most primitive organisms, the environment in which they evolved, and the way in which they influenced that environment. Such endeavors assume that it is easy to differentiate the biotic from the abiotic, whether in ancient rocks on Earth or elsewhere in our solar system. But what constitutes a robust biosignature? What may seem straightforward in theory is difficult in practice. Therefore, determining what is, or is not, a biosignature represents one of the most significant challenges in geobiology today.