Where did Earth's water come from? An experiment revealed a surprising answer

A new experiment by researchers at the University of New Mexico successfully produced water from dry rocks and hydrogen gas under laboratory conditions simulating early Earth. The results suggest that Earth may have generated much of its own water, without relying on comets and asteroids. The study was published in the journal Nature Geoscience.

Researchers at the University of New Mexico managed to produce water from dry rocks and hydrogen gas under laboratory conditions simulating the extreme environment in which Earth formed about 4.5 billion years ago. The experiment, published in the journal Nature Geoscience, showed that nearly 80% of iron oxides in the samples turned into metallic iron and water vapor within minutes. The researchers estimate that a similar mechanism could have produced amounts of water equivalent to hundreds of oceans. However, the study does not prove that all of Earth's water was created this way, and the calculation is a theoretical estimate. The discovery may impact the search for life on other planets, as it suggests that rocky planets might produce their own water.