The advent of oxygenic photosynthesis changed Earth's surface environment in numerous ways, perhaps most notably by making possible the evolution of large and complex life-forms. Current models suggest that organisms that can perform oxygenic photosynthesis first took hold in isolated marine and freshwater basins, producing local oxygen oases. Here we present calculations that suggest that uranium deposits could have formed at the margins of these basins due to the strong local reduction oxidation gradients. Because of the high abundance of 235U at this time, these uranium deposits could have formed widespread, near surface, critical natural fission reactors.
Original URL: http://www.geosociety.org/gsatoday/archive/19/10/pdf/i1052-5173-19-10-4.pdf
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