# Pilbara Craton > Mediated Wiki article. Canonical URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Pilbara_Craton > Markdown URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Pilbara_Craton.md > Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pilbara_Craton > Source revision: 1352923584 > License: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/) {{short description|Old and stable part of the continental lithosphere located in Pilbara, Western Australia}} {{Use dmy dates|date=September 2020}} {{Infobox rockunit | name = Pilbara Craton | period = Archean | age = {{Long fossil range|3800|1700|[Eoarchean](/source/Eoarchean) to [Paleoproterozoic](/source/Paleoproterozoic) |ref=}} | image = Pilbara craton from satellite.jpg | imagesize = | caption = Satellite view in 2013 of Pilbara Craton | type = [Geological formation](/source/Geological_formation) | prilithology = [Granite](/source/Granite) | otherlithology = [Greenstone](/source/Greenstone_belt) | unitof = | subunits = | underlies = | overlies = | thickness = up to {{Convert|20|km|abbr=on}} | area = Estimated {{convert|250000|km2|abbr=on}}, Pilbara IRBA v7 region {{convert|178231.26|km2|abbr=on}}{{cite web|url=https://www.dcceew.gov.au/environment/land/nrs/science/capad/2014|title= CAPAD 2014|access-date=2023-04-01}} | map = File:IBRA 6.1 Pilbara.png | map_caption = Map of Australia with the Pilbara region highlighted in red. | location = | coordinates = | region = [Western Australia](/source/Western_Australia) | country = [Australia](/source/Australia) | extent = | namedfor = [Pilbara](/source/Pilbara) | namedby = See [Pilbara#Etymology](/source/Pilbara) | year_ts = | location_ts = | coordinates_ts = | paleocoordinates_ts = | region_ts = | country_ts = | thickness_ts = }} {{Annotated image | image = Interim Biogeographic Regionalisation for Australia, version 7.pdf | image-width = 2479 | image-left = -200 | image-top = -450 | width = 350 | height =300 | float = right | annotations = {{Annotation |0|0|▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮|text-align=left | font-size=12 | font-weight=bold | font-family=Arial | background-color= | color=white}} {{Annotation |0|12|▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮|text-align=left | font-size=12 | font-weight=bold | font-family=Arial | background-color= | color=white}} {{Annotation |0|24|▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮|text-align=left | font-size=12 | font-weight=bold | font-family=Arial | background-color= | color=white}} {{Annotation |0|36|▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮|text-align=left | font-size=12 | font-weight=bold | font-family=Arial | background-color= | color=white}} {{Annotation |0|48|▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮|text-align=left | font-size=12 | font-weight=bold | font-family=Arial | background-color= | color=white}} {{Annotation |0|60|▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮|text-align=left | font-size=12 | font-weight=bold | font-family=Arial | background-color= | color=white}} {{Annotation |0|72|▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮|text-align=left | font-size=12 | font-weight=bold | font-family=Arial | background-color= | color=white}} {{Annotation |0|84|▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮|text-align=left | font-size=12 | font-weight=bold | font-family=Arial | background-color= | color=white}} {{Annotation |0|96|▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮|text-align=left | font-size=12 | font-weight=bold | font-family=Arial | background-color= | color=white}} {{Annotation |0|108|▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮▮|text-align=left | font-size=12 | font-weight=bold | font-family=Arial | background-color= | color=white}} {{Annotation |0|0|KEY|text-align=left | font-size=12 | font-weight=bold | font-family=Arial | background-color= | color=black}} {{Annotation |5| 12|Pilbara Craton subregions:|text-align=left | font-size=12 | font-weight=bold | font-family=Arial | background-color= | color=black}} {{Annotation |5| 24|PIL01 -|text-align=left | font-size=12 | font-weight= | font-family= Arial| background-color=#FFFFFF | color=black}} {{Annotation |52| 24|Chichester|text-align=left | font-size=12 | font-weight= | font-family= Arial| background-color=#CBDAB1 | color=black}} {{Annotation |5| 36|PIL02 -|text-align=left | font-size=12 | font-weight= | font-family=Arial | background-color=#FFFFFF | color=black}} {{Annotation |52| 36|Fortescue|text-align=left | font-size=12 | font-weight= | font-family=Arial | background-color=#CBDAB1 | color=black}} {{Annotation |5| 48|PIL03 -|text-align=left | font-size=12 | font-weight= | font-family=Arial | background-color=#FFFFFF | color=black}} {{Annotation |52| 48|Hamersley|text-align=left | font-size=12 | font-weight= | font-family=Arial | background-color=#CBDAB1 | color=black}} {{Annotation |5| 60|PIL04 -| text-align=left | font-size=12 | font-weight= | font-family=Arial | background-color=#FFFFFF | color=#black}} {{Annotation |52| 60|Roebourne| text-align=left | font-size=12 | font-weight= | font-family=Arial | background-color=#CBDAB1 | color=black}} {{Annotation |5| 72|Carnarvon subregion:|text-align=left | font-size=12 | font-weight=bold | font-family=Arial | background-color= | color=black}} {{Annotation |5| 84|CAR01 -| text-align=left | font-size=12 | font-weight= | font-family=Arial | background-color=#FFFFFF | color=black}} {{Annotation |52| 84|Cape Range| text-align=left | font-size=12 | font-weight= | font-family=Arial | background-color=#F8D9AA | color=black}} {{Annotation |5| 96|Gascoyne subregion:|text-align=left | font-size=12 | font-weight=bold | font-family=Arial | background-color= | color=black}} {{Annotation |5| 108|GAS01 - | text-align=left | font-size=12 | font-weight= | font-family=Arial | background-color= #FFFFFF| color=black}} {{Annotation |52| 108|Ashburton | text-align=left | font-size=12 | font-weight= | font-family=Arial | background-color=#E7E7A2 | color=black}} | caption = Pilbara Craton part of the [continental lithosphere](/source/continental_lithosphere) using version 7 of [IBRA classification](/source/Interim_Biogeographic_Regionalisation_for_Australia). The geo-ecosystems of the PIL02(Fortescue) area in particular are usually on much younger exposed rock formations (< 1.7 Ga) than the lithology discussed in this article. }} The '''Pilbara Craton''' is an old and stable part of the [continental lithosphere](/source/continental_lithosphere) located in the [Pilbara](/source/Pilbara) region of [Western Australia](/source/Western_Australia). The Pilbara Craton is one of only two pristine [Archaean](/source/Archean) 3.8–2.7 [Ga](/source/Gigaannum) (billion years ago) crusts identified on the Earth, along with the [Kaapvaal Craton](/source/Kaapvaal_Craton) in [South Africa](/source/South_Africa). The youngest rocks are 1.7 Ga old in the historic area assigned to the Craton.{{cite journal|last1=Hickman and Van Kranendonk|first1=Arthur and Martin|title=Early Earth evolution: evidence from the 3.5–1.8 Ga geological history of the Pilbara region of Western Australia|journal=Episodes|date=2012|volume=35|issue=1|pages=283–297|doi=10.18814/epiiugs/2012/v35i1/028|url=http://aca.unsw.edu.au/sites/default/files/publications/Pilbara_Episodes_2012.pdf|doi-access=free|archive-date=9 March 2022|access-date=1 April 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220309202515/https://www.aca.unsw.edu.au/sites/default/files/publications/Pilbara_Episodes_2012.pdf|url-status=dead}} Both locations may have once been part of the [Vaalbara](/source/Vaalbara) supercontinent or the continent of [Ur](/source/Ur_(continent)). There are two subregional geographical classification regimes used, being: # The [Interim Biogeographic Regionalisation for Australia](/source/Interim_Biogeographic_Regionalisation_for_Australia) based upon interacting geo-ecosystems # Based on geology alone where the eastern continuous oldest portion is called the [Eastern Pilbara Craton](/source/Eastern_Pilbara_Craton) and younger surface lithologies within the larger craton have different names. [[File:Pilbara Craton Region Map.pdf|thumb|The currently exposed continuous Pilbara Craton in red, the Eastern Pilbara region outlined in blue, and detail of local [lithologies](/source/lithology). However this map does not show other discontinuous exposed oldest rocks of the Pilbara Craton. Accordingly a reader should refer to the references for more detailed geological mapping which is not reproduced here for copyright reasons.]] == Geology == {{main|Eastern Pilbara Craton}} The most important part of the Pilbara Craton to understand the early Earth crust is called the [Eastern Pilbara Craton](/source/Eastern_Pilbara_Craton), where, still exposed today, are crustal rocks that are up to 3.8 billion years old and intrusive granitic domes along with greenstone belts that are about 3.5 to 3.2 billion years old. The geology was reassessed in 2007 with the separation out from the geologically named Pilbara Craton of a thick succession of interbedded clastic or chemical sedimentary rocks and volcanic rocks forming the Fortescue, Hamersley, and Turee Creek basins that are usually aged from 2.78–2.42 billion years old and the younger volcano-sedimentary Ashburton Basin aged from 2.21–1.79 billion years ago. A surface region between the Fortescue and Hamersley basins is even younger, at less than 1.7 billion years old, as are the surrounding geo-ecosystems surface rocks to the Pilbara Craton. To the east and south of the Eastern Pilbara Craton there are significant outcrops of the very old rocks and that these are confined to the traditional area of the Pilbara Craton which is inferred to be subsurface for more than half its area. === Impact structures === In 2025 the discovery of [shatter cone](/source/shatter_cone)s near [Marble Bar](/source/Marble_Bar%2C_Western_Australia) was announced, confirming the 3.47 billion year old [North Pole Dome](/source/North_Pole_Dome) as the oldest dated [impact structure](/source/impact_structure) (remnant of an [impact crater](/source/impact_crater)) in the world.{{cite journal|last1=Kirkland |first1=C.L. |last2=Johnson |first2=T.E. |last3=Kaempf |first3=J. |last4=Ribeiro |first4=B.V. |last5=Zametzer |first5=A. |last6=Hugh Smithies |first6=R. |last7=McDonald |first7=B. |title=A Paleoarchaean impact crater in the Pilbara Craton, Western Australia |journal=[Nature Communications](/source/Nature_Communications) |volume=16 |article-number=2224 (2025) |date=6 March 2025 |issue=1 |doi=10.1038/s41467-025-57558-3 |doi-access=free |pmid=40050265 |pmc=11885519 |bibcode=2025NatCo..16.2224K }}de Kruijff, P. (6 March 2025). [https://www.abc.net.au/news/science/2025-03-06/oldest-known-crater-pilbara-geology-3-47-billion-years-old/105019606 Earth's oldest-known crater discovered in outback WA is 3.47 billion years old, study finds] ''[ABC News](/source/ABC_News_(Australia))''. Retrieved 6 March 2025. === Mineralogy === There are extensive high quality [iron ore](/source/iron_ore) deposits and also economic to mine [gold](/source/gold), [silver](/source/silver), [copper](/source/copper), [nickel](/source/nickel), [lead](/source/lead), [zinc](/source/zinc), [molybdenum](/source/molybdenum), [vanadium](/source/vanadium) and [fluorite](/source/fluorite) deposits. == Evidence of earliest life == Evidence of the [earliest known life](/source/Earliest_known_life_forms) [on land](/source/Evolutionary_history_of_life) may have been found in 3.48-billion-year-old [geyserite](/source/geyserite) and other related mineral deposits (often found around [hot spring](/source/hot_spring)s and [geyser](/source/geyser)s) uncovered in the [Dresser Formation](/source/Dresser_Formation) in the Pilbara Craton.{{cite journal |last1=Djokic |first1=Tara |last2=Van Kranendonk |first2=Martin J. |last3=Campbell |first3=Kathleen A. |last4=Walter |first4=Malcolm R. |last5=Ward |first5=Colin R. |title=Earliest signs of life on land preserved in ca. 3.5 Ga hot spring deposits |date=9 May 2017 |journal=[Nature Communications](/source/Nature_Communications) |volume=8 |article-number=15263 |doi=10.1038/ncomms15263 |pmid=28486437 |pmc=5436104 |bibcode=2017NatCo...815263D }}{{cite web |title=Dresser Formation - Pilbara |url=https://pilbara.mq.edu.au/wiki/Dresser_Formation |website=pilbara.mq.edu.au}}{{cite journal |last1=Noffke |first1=N |author1-link=Nora Noffke |last2=Christian |first2=D |last3=Wacey |first3=D |last4=Hazen |first4=RM |title=Microbially induced sedimentary structures recording an ancient ecosystem in the ca. 3.48 billion-year-old Dresser Formation, Pilbara, Western Australia. |journal=Astrobiology |date=December 2013 |volume=13 |issue=12 |pages=1103–24 |doi=10.1089/ast.2013.1030 |pmid=24205812|pmc=3870916 |bibcode=2013AsBio..13.1103N }} Biogenic sedimentary structures (microbialites) such as stromatolites and MISS were described from tidal, lagoonal and subtidal coastal settings that can be reconstructed from the Dresser stratigraphy as well.{{cite news |author=Staff |title=Oldest evidence of life on land found in 3.48-billion-year-old Australian rocks |url=https://phys.org/news/2017-05-oldest-evidence-life-billion-year-old-australian.html |date=9 May 2017 |work=[Phys.org](/source/Phys.org) |access-date=13 May 2017 }} The rocks of the Dresser Formation display evidence of [haematite](/source/haematite) alteration that may have been microbially influenced.{{cite journal |last1=Van Kranendonk |first1=Martin J. |last2=Philippot |first2=Pascal |last3=Lepot |first3=Kevin |last4=Bodorkos |first4=Simon |last5=Pirajno |first5=Franco |date=10 November 2008 |title=Geological setting of Earth's oldest fossils in the ca. 3.5 Ga Dresser Formation, Pilbara Craton, Western Australia |url=https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0301926808001551 |journal=[Precambrian Research](/source/Precambrian_Research) |volume=167 |issue=1–2 |pages=93–124 |doi=10.1016/j.precamres.2008.07.003 |bibcode=2008PreR..167...93V |access-date=30 December 2022}} thumb|left|alt=A specimen of Apex chert.|Apex chert The earliest ''direct'' evidence of [life on Earth](/source/Earliest_known_life_forms) may be fossils of [microorganism](/source/microorganism)s [permineralized](/source/Permineralization) in 3.465-billion-year-old [Australia](/source/Australia)n Apex [chert](/source/chert) rocks.{{cite web |last=Tyrell |first=Kelly April |title=Oldest fossils ever found show life on Earth began before 3.5 billion years ago |url=https://news.wisc.edu/oldest-fossils-ever-found-show-life-on-earth-began-before-3-5-billion-years-ago/ |date=18 December 2017 |work=[University of Wisconsin-Madison](/source/University_of_Wisconsin-Madison) |access-date=27 December 2017 }}{{cite journal |last1=Schopf |first1=J. William |last2=Kitajima |first2=Kouki |last3=Spicuzza |first3=Michael J. |last4=Kudryavtsev |first4=Anatolly B. |last5=Valley |first5=John W. |title=SIMS analyses of the oldest known assemblage of microfossils document their taxon-correlated carbon isotope compositions |date=2017 |journal=[PNAS](/source/Proceedings_of_the_National_Academy_of_Sciences_of_the_United_States_of_America) |volume=115 |issue=1 |pages=53–58 |doi=10.1073/pnas.1718063115 |pmid=29255053 |pmc=5776830 |doi-access=free }} However, the evidence for the biogenicity of these microstructures has been thoroughly debated.{{cite journal |last1=Schopf |first1=J. William |date=9 May 2006 |title=Fossil evidence of Archaean life |journal=Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B |volume=361 |issue=1470 |pages=869–885 |doi=10.1098/rstb.2006.1834 |pmid=16754604 |pmc=1578735 }}{{cite journal |last1=Alleon |first1=Julien |last2=Flannery |first2=David T. |last3=Ferralis |first3=Nicola |last4=Williford |first4=Kenneth H. |last5=Zhang |first5=Yong |last6=Schuessler |first6=Jan A. |last7=Summons |first7=Roger E. |date=13 November 2019 |title=Organo-mineral associations in chert of the 3.5 Ga Mount Ada Basalt raise questions about the origin of organic matter in Paleoarchean hydrothermally influenced sediments |journal=Scientific Reports |volume=9 |issue=1 |page=16712 |doi=10.1038/s41598-019-53272-5 |pmid=31723181 |s2cid=207986473 |pmc=6853986 |bibcode=2019NatSR...916712A }} Originally, 11 taxa were described from a deposit thought to be located at the mouth of a river due to certain characteristics like rounded and sorted grains.{{Cite journal|last1=Schopf|first1=J.|last2=Packer|first2=B.|date=1987-07-03|title=Early Archean (3.3-billion to 3.5-billion-year-old) microfossils from Warrawoona Group, Australia|url=https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.11539686|journal=Science|language=en|volume=237|issue=4810|pages=70–73|doi=10.1126/science.11539686|pmid=11539686|bibcode=1987Sci...237...70S|issn=0036-8075|url-access=subscription}}{{Cite journal|last=Schopf|first=J. W.|date=1993-04-30|title=Microfossils of the Early Archean Apex Chert: New Evidence of the Antiquity of Life|url=https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.260.5108.640|journal=Science|language=en|volume=260|issue=5108|pages=640–646|doi=10.1126/science.260.5108.640|pmid=11539831|bibcode=1993Sci...260..640S|s2cid=2109914|issn=0036-8075|url-access=subscription}} Extensive field mapping and [petrogenetic](/source/Petrogenesis) analysis has since shown the setting for the purported [microfossils](/source/microfossils) to be [hydrothermal](/source/Hydrothermal_vent){{Cite journal|last1=Brasier|first1=Martin D.|last2=Green|first2=Owen R.|last3=Jephcoat|first3=Andrew P.|last4=Kleppe|first4=Annette K.|last5=Van Kranendonk|first5=Martin J.|last6=Lindsay|first6=John F.|last7=Steele|first7=Andrew|last8=Grassineau|first8=Nathalie V.|date=March 2002|title=Questioning the evidence for Earth's oldest fossils|url=https://www.nature.com/articles/416076a|journal=Nature|language=en|volume=416|issue=6876|pages=76–81|doi=10.1038/416076a|pmid=11882895|bibcode=2002Natur.416...76B|s2cid=819491|issn=1476-4687|url-access=subscription}}{{Cite journal|date=2005-10-21|title=Critical testing of Earth's oldest putative fossil assemblage from the ~3.5 Ga Apex chert, Chinaman Creek, Western Australia|url=https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0301926805000926|journal=Precambrian Research|language=en|volume=140|issue=1–2|pages=55–102|doi=10.1016/j.precamres.2005.06.008|issn=0301-9268|last1=Brasier|first1=M.|last2=Green|first2=O.|last3=Lindsay|first3=J.|last4=McLoughlin|first4=N.|last5=Steele|first5=A.|last6=Stoakes|first6=C.|bibcode=2005PreR..140...55B|url-access=subscription}} and this is widely supported.{{Cite journal|date=2006-02-01|title=Volcanic degassing, hydrothermal circulation and the flourishing of early life on Earth: A review of the evidence from c. 3490-3240 Ma rocks of the Pilbara Supergroup, Pilbara Craton, Western Australia|url=https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0012825205001431|journal=Earth-Science Reviews|language=en|volume=74|issue=3–4|pages=197–240|doi=10.1016/j.earscirev.2005.09.005|issn=0012-8252|last1=Vankranendonk|first1=M.|bibcode=2006ESRv...74..197V|url-access=subscription}}{{Cite journal|last1=Pinti|first1=Daniele L.|last2=Mineau|first2=Raymond|last3=Clement|first3=Valentin|date=September 2009|title=Hydrothermal alteration and microfossil artefacts of the 3,465-million-year-old Apex chert|url=https://www.nature.com/articles/ngeo601|journal=Nature Geoscience|language=en|volume=2|issue=9|pages=640–643|doi=10.1038/ngeo601|bibcode=2009NatGe...2..640P|issn=1752-0908|url-access=subscription}}{{Cite journal|date=2014-01-01|title=Multiple generations of carbonaceous material deposited in Apex chert by basin-scale pervasive hydrothermal fluid flow|url=https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S1342937X13001512|journal=Gondwana Research|language=en|volume=25|issue=1|pages=284–289|doi=10.1016/j.gr.2013.04.006|issn=1342-937X|last1=Olcott Marshall|first1=Alison|last2=Jehlička|first2=Jan|last3=Rouzaud|first3=Jean-Noel|last4=Marshall|first4=Craig P.|bibcode=2014GondR..25..284O|url-access=subscription}}{{Cite journal|date=2016-08-01|title=3.46 Ga Apex chert 'microfossils' reinterpreted as mineral artefacts produced during phyllosilicate exfoliation|url=https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S1342937X15001902|journal=Gondwana Research|language=en|volume=36|pages=296–313|doi=10.1016/j.gr.2015.07.010|issn=1342-937X|hdl=2164/9044|hdl-access=free|last1=Wacey|first1=David|last2=Saunders|first2=Martin|last3=Kong|first3=Charlie|last4=Brasier|first4=Alexander|last5=Brasier|first5=Martin|bibcode=2016GondR..36..296W|url-access=subscription}} Consequently, many alternative abiotic explanations have been proposed for the filamentous microstructures including carbonaceous rims around quartz spherules and rhombs, witherite self-assembled biomorphs{{Cite journal|last=Garcia-Ruiz|first=J. M.|date=2003-11-14|title=Self-Assembled Silica-Carbonate Structures and Detection of Ancient Microfossils|url=https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.1090163|journal=Science|language=en|volume=302|issue=5648|pages=1194–1197|doi=10.1126/science.1090163|pmid=14615534|bibcode=2003Sci...302.1194G|s2cid=12117608|issn=0036-8075|url-access=subscription}} and haematite infilled veinlets.{{Cite journal|last1=Marshall|first1=Craig P.|last2=Emry|first2=Julienne R.|last3=Olcott Marshall|first3=Alison|date=April 2011|title=Haematite pseudomicrofossils present in the 3.5-billion-year-old Apex Chert|url=https://www.nature.com/articles/ngeo1084|journal=Nature Geoscience|language=en|volume=4|issue=4|pages=240–243|doi=10.1038/ngeo1084|bibcode=2011NatGe...4..240M|s2cid=55506242 |issn=1752-0908|url-access=subscription}} The carbonaceous matter composing the filaments has also been repeatedly examined with [Raman spectroscopy](/source/Raman_spectroscopy){{Cite journal|last1=Schopf|first1=J. William|last2=Kudryavtsev|first2=Anatoliy B.|last3=Agresti|first3=David G.|last4=Wdowiak|first4=Thomas J.|last5=Czaja|first5=Andrew D.|date=March 2002|title=Laser–Raman imagery of Earth's earliest fossils|url=https://www.nature.com/articles/416073a|journal=Nature|language=en|volume=416|issue=6876|pages=73–76|doi=10.1038/416073a|pmid=11882894|bibcode=2002Natur.416...73S|s2cid=4382712|issn=1476-4687|url-access=subscription}} which has yielded mixed interpretations of results and is therefore regarded by many to be unreliable for determining biogenicity when used alone.{{Cite journal|last1=Pasteris|first1=Jill Dill|last2=Wopenka|first2=Brigitte|date=2003-12-01|title=Necessary, but Not Sufficient: Raman Identification of Disordered Carbon as a Signature of Ancient Life|url=https://www.liebertpub.com/doi/10.1089/153110703322736051|journal=Astrobiology|volume=3|issue=4|pages=727–738|doi=10.1089/153110703322736051|pmid=14987478|bibcode=2003AsBio...3..727P|issn=1531-1074|url-access=subscription}}{{Cite journal|last1=Gregorio|first1=Bradley T. De|last2=Sharp|first2=Thomas G.|date=2006-05-01|title=The structure and distribution of carbon in 3.5 Ga Apex chert: Implications for the biogenicity of Earth's oldest putative microfossils|url=https://www.degruyter.com/document/doi/10.2138/am.2006.2149/html|journal=American Mineralogist|language=en|volume=91|issue=5–6|pages=784–789|doi=10.2138/am.2006.2149|bibcode=2006AmMin..91..784D|s2cid=129380309|issn=1945-3027|url-access=subscription}} Perhaps the most compelling argument to date is based on high spatial resolution electron microscopy like [scanning](/source/Scanning_electron_microscope) and [transmission electron microscopy](/source/transmission_electron_microscopy). This study concludes that the nano-scale morphology of the filaments and the distribution of the carbonaceous matter are inconsistent with a biological origin for the filaments. Instead, it is more likely that the [hydrothermal](/source/Hydrothermal_vent) conditions have assisted in the heating, hydration and exfoliation of potassium micas on which barium, iron and carbonate have secondarily been adsorbed. Carbonaceous structures appearing to be of biological origin have also been discovered in the 3.47 billion year-old Mount Ada Basalt, a rock layer that is a few million years older than the Apex chert. However, the biogenicity of these supposed fossils has also been disputed, with some studies finding abiotic processes to be a more likely culprit for their formation. Additional potential bioindicators from the Precambrian have been found in the region, including carbonaceous [microfossils](/source/microfossils) in the northeastern Pilbara Craton.{{cite journal|last1=Sugitani|first1=Kenichiro|display-authors=etal|year=2009|title=Taxonomy and biogenicity of Archaean spheroidal microfossils (ca. 3.0 Ga) from the Mount Goldsworthy–Mount Grant area in the northeastern Pilbara Craton, Western Australia|journal=Precambrian Research|volume=173|issue=1–4|pages=50–59|doi=10.1016/j.precamres.2009.02.004|bibcode=2009PreR..173...50S}} == See also == {{div col|colwidth=30em}} * [Archaea](/source/Archaea) * [Australian Shield](/source/Australian_Shield) * [Centralian Superbasin](/source/Centralian_Superbasin) * [Gawler Craton](/source/Gawler_Craton) * [Geology of Australia](/source/Geology_of_Australia) * [Ore genesis](/source/Ore_genesis) * [Perth Basin](/source/Perth_Basin) * [Western Plateau](/source/Western_Plateau) * [Yilgarn Craton](/source/Yilgarn_Craton) {{div col end}} == References == {{reflist}} == Bibliography == * {{cite journal|last1=Kato|first1=Y.|last2=Nakamura|first2=K.|title=Origin and global tectonic significance of Early Archean cherts from the Marble Bar greenstone belt, Pilbara Craton, Western Australia|journal=Precambrian Research|date=2003|volume=125|issue=3–4|pages=191–243|doi=10.1016/S0301-9268(03)00043-3|bibcode=2003PreR..125..191K}} * {{cite journal|last1=Oliver|first1=N. H. S.|last2=Cawood|first2=P.A|title=Early tectonic dewatering and brecciation on the overturned sequence at Marble Bar, Pilbara Craton, Western Australia: dome-related or not?|journal=Precambrian Research|date=2001|volume=105|issue=1|pages=1–15|doi=10.1016/S0301-9268(00)00098-X|bibcode=2001PreR..105....1O}} * {{cite journal|last1=Terabayashi|first1=M.|last2=Masada|first2=Y.|last3=Ozawa|first3=H.|title=Archean ocean-floor metamorphism in the North Pole area, Pilbara Craton, Western Australia|journal=Precambrian Research|date=2003|volume=127|issue=1–3|pages=167–180|doi=10.1016/S0301-9268(03)00186-4|bibcode=2003PreR..127..167T}} * {{cite journal|last1=Zegers|first1=E.|last2=de Wit|first2=M. J.|last3=Dann|first3=J.|last4=White|first4=S. H.|title=Vaalbara, Earth's oldest assembled continent? A combined structural, geochronological, and palaeomagnetic test|journal=Terra Nova|date=1998|volume=10|issue=5|pages=250–259|doi=10.1046/j.1365-3121.1998.00199.x|bibcode=1998TeNov..10..250Z|citeseerx=10.1.1.566.6728|s2cid=52261989 }} == External links == {{Commons category|Pilbara Craton}} * [http://www.ga.gov.au/pdf/Corp0055.pdf Deformation and gold mineralisation of the Archaean Pilbara Craton, Western Australia] * [https://web.archive.org/web/20120209234059/http://www.doir.wa.gov.au/documents/gswa/AR01_02techpaperLB.pdf Stratigraphic revision of the Warrawoona and Gorge Creek Groups in the Kelly greenstone belt, Pilbara Craton,Western Australia] * [https://web.archive.org/web/20120126093718/http://rst.gsfc.nasa.gov/Sect17/Sect17_3.html Tectonic/Volcanic Landforms] {{DEFAULTSORT:Pilbara Craton}} Category:Cratons Category:Geology of Western Australia Category:Economic geology Category:Structural geology Category:Historical geology Category:Bornhardts Category:Physiographic sections Category:Pilbara --- Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Pilbara Craton](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pilbara_Craton) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pilbara_Craton?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.