An Age that almost prevented life to evolve on Earth

Traces of Evidence from Rocks

Somewhere in the Eastern coast of Canada, there were rocks that have been dated by radio-activity to just BEFORE the moment that life became very complex. So if we can understand the circumstances under which the rocks were formed, we may be able to get a clue as to why life suddenly became more complex. 

In the photo below fragments of red stone are embedded in the darker rock. They look out of place don't they?

In fact, they are. Geologists call them Drop Stones. They were transported here by Glaciers. As the Ice moved off the land, it floated out over the great sea in a great shelf that carries stones that it had gathered on the continents. Then when the ice eventually melted, the stones fell into the sediments on the sea floor.

But Canada wasn't the only place that was covered by ice. Drop Stones of the same age have been found in deposits all over the world. The evidence points to a global spread of Glaciation. So Just before complex life appeared..

The world was in the grip of its biggest ICE AGE of its entire history.

It's been called... SNOWBALL EARTH

The earth was plunged into a deep freeze so severe it probably extended from pole to pole. The surface of the seas were frozen over, and continents of Glaciers and Ice Caps developed. Ice were probably more than a kilometer thick. We still don't know enough about the details, but it's likely that those conditions lasted for millions of years. 

Stromatolites and Bacteria that dominated the earth were crushed and covered by Glaciers. Life was nearly annihilated before it had truly begun. Can you imagine how life managed to survive in those circumstances? But Survive, it did.