Parnell John
Department of Geology and Petroleum Geology, University of Aberdeen, Aberdeen AB24 3UE, UK.
Orig Life Evol Biosph. 2004 Dec;34(6):533-47. doi: 10.1023/b:orig.0000043132.23966.a1.
Irradiation of organic molecules by mineral radioactivity is a feasible alternative to cosmic irradiation to precipitate solid organic carbon-rich matter on the early Earth. Radioactive (uranium- and thorium-rich) minerals have been concentrated at the Earth's surface, and accumulated accretionary coatings of carbon due to irradiation, since early Archean times. The organic accretion process could have occurred at the surface or in the sub-surface, and is independent of a terrestrial or extraterrestrial source for the carbon.
矿物放射性对有机分子的辐照是早期地球上沉淀富含固体有机碳物质的一种可行的宇宙辐照替代方式。自太古宙早期以来，放射性（富含铀和钍）矿物就已在地球表面富集，并因辐照积累了碳质增生包层。有机增生过程可能发生在地表或地下，且与碳的地球或外星来源无关。
