Rocks from Earth’s beginnings
© Christoph Heubeck
Professor Christoph Heubeck is a sedimentologist and stratigraphy expert and holds the Chair of General Geology and Earth History in Jena. For many years, he has conducted research into the beginnings of Earth history, especially in the Barberton Greenstone Belt.
Is the human race alone in the universe? Despite the known existence of thousands of exoplanets, the Earth so far seems to be the only planet on which life has emerged. Liquid water and the heat given off by plate tectonics were probably critical preconditions for this development. The oldest sedimentary rocks on Earth hold clues to the environmental conditions under which early life began.
Tonight’s lecture uses selected rocks from Australia and South Africa to describe these early habitats, explains typical structures and fossils based on exhibits, and assesses the likelihood that life might exist beyond our solar system.
Tickets are free. For more information, please visit the website of the Freundeskreis der Geologischen Staatssammlung München e.V. (Friends of the State Geological Collection in Munich).