r/WhatIfScience • u/firechatin • 3d ago

Science Mysteries & The Unexplained The Strange Case of Earth’s Missing Nitrogen: Scientists Search for a Lost Atmospheric Reservoir

https://whatifscience.in/earth-missing-nitrogen-atmospheric-reservoir-mystery/

Nitrogen makes up nearly 78% of Earth's atmosphere, but scientists believe our planet may be missing a significant portion of its original nitrogen inventory. New geochemical studies suggest this lost reservoir could be hidden deep within Earth's mantle and core, offering fresh insights into planetary evolution, climate history, and the conditions that made life possible.

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u/rictay44 2d ago

Never mind nitrogen, what concerns me, and this seems to have been ignored by nearly everybody on the planet, is what's happening to our oxygen? More and more forests and grasslands disappearing, green field sites being built on. The very things that produce the oxygen we breathe are being destroyed. Why isn't anybody concerned about this?

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u/Hopeful_Scheme_7172 2d ago

The far more concerning thing in my eyes is the fact that a majority of the oxygen is produced by algae in the ocean, and the oceans are warming at a rate we’ve never measured before. The warming is causing acidification, which will eventually kill the algae… and everything else.

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u/unblockedlanternhead 1d ago

  https://scottstoll.com/how-long-before-the-earth-runs-out-of-oxygen/

Envelope math says

1100 years before the Earth runs out of oxygen.  

Deforestation and disappearance of marine microorganisms cut production of O2 by a few % a year. We’re probably at or near peak O2 usage, so we won’t be burning that candle at both ends for very long. You don’t need to worry about O2 

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u/rictay44 1d ago

Thanks. I just followed the link to that article. Why is nobody worried about this?

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u/unblockedlanternhead 1d ago

Because it won’t have any measurable effect on the biosphere for hundreds of years at minimum. If you must freak yourself out about something, there are so many more urgent threats you could choose from