A specific event will end all life on Earth: NASA has a date

It's not just in the movies. One day, life will become impossible on Earth. Researchers have looked into the subject, and the scenario they put forward doesn't include any of the disaster movie elements often seen on the big screen.

NASA and Tōhō University in Japan have published a study on the end of life on Earth. According to the results, it won't be aliens, machine domination, rising sea levels, or an asteroid impact that will be responsible. In fact, their study highlights that life on our planet will become impossible due to a lack of oxygen (O2). And this phenomenon can't be controlled; it comes from the Sun, which grows hotter as it ages, triggering a chain reaction, according to media outlet Demotivateur.

Inevitable phenomenon

According to the researchers, there are just over a billion years left before life will become impossible on Earth. As a reminder, the Sun emits energy and releases carbon dioxide (as well as other gases such as hydrogen and helium) at the same time. The carbon dioxide—24% of which is absorbed by the oceans, 30% by land, and 45% by the atmosphere—will eventually disappear from the atmosphere and lead to the extinction of living beings. Because without CO2, the process of photosynthesis—responsible for absorbing CO2 and releasing oxygen—can no longer occur, reports Demotivateur.

No more CO2 means no more oxygen and no way to breathe. Moreover, if the oxygen disappears, so will the ozone layer. Devastating solar radiation will then reach the Earth, the level of atmospheric methane will rise, and the planet will become desolate. Only anaerobic micro-organisms will be able to survive such heat.

And if human activity increases further (which will be the case), the process will speed up and shorten the time that separates us from the "end of the world".

(MH with Raphaël Liset - Source: Demotivateur - Illustration: ©Unsplash)