According to recently published study, over quarter of nitrogen on Earth comes from weathering of planet’s bedrock.
For centuries, the prevailing science indicated that all of nitrogen on Earth available to plants comes from atmosphere.
The study has found that up to 26 per cent of the nitrogen in natural ecosystems is sourced from rocks, with the remaining fraction from the atmosphere.
The discovery could greatly improve climate change projections.
This study shows that nitrogen weathering is globally significant source of nutrition to soils and ecosystems worldwide.
Rock-derived nitrogen may fuel growth of forests and grasslands, and allow them to sequester more CO2 than previously thought.