Thomas Gold
October 2000
My new book, "The Deep Hot Bioshpere," (Copernicus, An Imprint of Springer-Verlag, New York, ISBN 0-387-98546-8) is now available in bookstores in the USA and United Kingdom. It can also be obtained on the Internet from Barnes & Noble or Amazon.com. It discusses most of the items listed below.
The basic idea that a large amount of microbiol life exists in the pore spaces of the rocks down to depths of between 6 and 10 kilometers arose in the following way: natural petroleum almost always contains elevated levels of the chemically inert gas helium and at the same time it contains molecules that are unquestionably of biological origin. How these two different substances meet up in oil has long been a puzzle. If there exists microbial life, down to all levels that can be reached by the drill, then the biological molecules can be explained. The association with helium can then be explained adequetely if the hydrocarbons have come up from much deeper levels and thereby swept up the diffusely distributed helium that exists in the rocks.
The evidence that such a deep bioshpere exists has now been strongly supported by microbiol studies in deep bore holes.
Drilling deep into the crystalline granite of Sweden between 1986 and 1993 revealed substantial amounts of natural gas and oil. 80 barrels of oil were pumped up from a depth between 5.2 km and 6.7 km.
Russian petroleum geologists followed this operation closely. Dr. P.N. Kropotkin reported at a meeting in Moscow that the discovery of oil deep in the Baltic Shield may be considered a decisive factor in the hundred year old debate about the biogenic or abiogenic origin of oil. This discovery was made in deep wells that were drilled in the central part of the crystalline Baltic Shield, on the initiative of T. Gold.
Drilling into crystalline bedrock is now underway in Russia on a large scale. More than 300 wells have been drilled to a depth of more than 5 km and are productive, as also is the giant White Tiger field offshore Vietnam, mostly producing also from basement rock.
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Outgassing processes of the Earth are discussed, and the relation they may have to:
geophysics
geochemistry
sub-surface biology
origin of petroleum
earthquakes and volcanic eruptions
deposits of certain metal ores
chemical processing of the crust
Sub-surface life on Earth may give an indication that similar life exists on other planetary bodies, and suggests means of looking for that. The material is presented in the form of assorted papers from the following menu.
The most important information for estimating the value of a field: Recharging of oil and gas fields. people.cornell.edu
The origin of petroleum
Natural Gas and Oil people.cornell.edu
The Origin of Methane (and oil) in the Crust of the Earth — This is a major paper, outlining the reasons why an origin from non-biological materials accounts better for the facts, than an origin from buried biomass (approximately 31 printed pages).http://www.people.cornell.edu/pages/tg21/usgs.html
Can There Be Two Different Processes Responsible for Commercial Oil? people.cornell.edu
Evidence for a primordial origin of hydrocarbons people.cornell.edu
On the History of Science - Excerpts from a paper by P.N. Kropotkin people.cornell.edu
Depth Effects of Petroleum
Association of hydrocarbons with helium and with biological molecules people.cornell.edu
Association of Petroleum with Helium and Biological Molecules
Causes of Earthquakes and Earthquake Prediction people.cornell.edu
Earthquakes, Gases, and Earthquake Prediction
Eye-witness Accounts of Several Major Earthquakes
people.cornell.edu
Sub-surface life on Earth and possibly on other planetary bodies
The Deep, Hot Biosphere — Reason for suspecting massive microbial life in the crust of the Earth. people.cornell.edu
Life on other Planets — Sub-surface life on Earth suggests that similar life may exist on other planetary bodies. people.cornell.edu
The deposition of certain metal ores
people.cornell.edu
Metal Ores and Hydrocarbons
T. Gold Vita
people.cornell.edu
Page updated regularly.
Send e-mail to: tg21@cornell.edu
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