Among the expeditions led by the Deep Carbon Lab, the team of geologists from the University of Bologna who have been searching for years for traces of geological hydrogen in the oldest rocks on Earth, that in Lofoten, Norway, is the most complex. At the same time, this stage could represent a turning point in the research for the energy that likely gave origin to life on our planet. In fact, the theory followed by the researchers states that life would have originated in the Earth's crust, from interactions between natural hydrogen and the mineral rocks underground, and then transferred to the oceans and finally to the land. Geological hydrogen, the only kind of “fuel” that could be both renewable and zero-emission, is so little known and studied to date that geologists find it like navigating an unexplored ocean. Hence the importance of the research conducted by the team to contribute to a sustainable energetic future.

One year after their studies in Greenland, geologists have docked back to the far north, to the Lofoten Islands, land of cod fishing and the “midnight sun”, but also a true outdoor paradise. Finding molecular hydrogen in one of the most ancient areas on Earth demands for real exploration. The details of the composition of the minerals collected will reveal whether and how these rocks were the protagonists in the formation of hydrogen. The rocks that have emerged to the surface as a result of earthquakes over the millennia originated almost 2.5 billion years ago, at a depth of over 50 km (those studied in previous expeditions were at most 20-30 km deep). The high temperatures at the top of the mantle and intense plate tectonic activity have practically obliterated all traces of hydrogen. Like “rock detectives”, the researchers had ten days to travel around the most geologically interesting areas of the Norwegian archipelago, searching for the primordial element for life or spies of its existence.

The star of the hunt to hydrogen is a rock formed by the cooling of magma in the depths of the Earth, abunding around Nusfjord (south of the island group). Another protagonist of this research is magnetite, a mineral that generates the contrasting light and dark colors of the sand on the beach at Kvalvika, one of the main touristic attractions of Lofoten, in the central area. Its elevate ferrous component makes it heavy and difficult to transport, which is why it draws strange shapes in the rivulets of water that run along the beach. The mineral is especially interesting to geologists because, reacting with water, it traps oxygen and releases hydrogen, which in turn can bind to other oxygen chains and generate water from combustion.

To collect samples for specific analysis in the laboratory, researchers must access the lower layers of the Earth's crust, where the molecular structure is most solid. Using an instrument called a susceptibility meter, they identify and collect certain rocks with a high magnetite content and low level of alteration caused by erosion. To identify the ideal rocks, the surface must be broken with a hammer. This is a laborious process, which is further complicated by the constant changes in the weather. Fieldwork often has to be postponed until late at night, but the midnight sun of the Norwegian summer allows this.

After ten days among wind, rain, and midnight sun, 150 kilos of samples were finally collected along the coasts and fjords of Lofoten. Microscopic studies in the coming months will be able to determine the contribution of these rocks to the theory of the formation of life underground, but also on the surface and in the Earth's seas. A new fundamental step for this research has been achieved.

" Thirteen days in southwest Greenland, searching for natural hydrogen — a likely source of energy for the first terrestrial life forms and a possible clean energy resource for human activities. Despite unforeseen events and bad weather, the research conducted on the rocks of Greenland could represent a turning point for the ERC DeepSeep project.

After landing in Nuuk and obtaining their permits for scientific activities, the team from the Deep Carbon Lab in Bologna, joined by a researcher from the National Research Council in Turin and another from the University of Copenhagen, heads south. The navigation conditions are not easy due to the drift of the glaciers, which have never been so abundant in the last 20–30 years. These conditions contrast starkly with those experienced in the rest of the world, where (yet another) hottest month in history has been recorded.

Here it’s essential to be faster than the expected storm and reach the first stop: the coastal village of Paamiut, to maintain the expedition schedule. Losing a few days could compromise the entire expedition. The team needs to collect as many rock samples as possible with a hammer and chisel. Like detectives, with magnifying glass in hand, the researchers are hunting for clues on the interaction between hydrogen and carbon present in particular rocks dating back almost 2 billion years ago and emerging on the surface over geological eras.

Like industrial hydrogen, natural hydrogen produces water (and not CO2) through combustion, but its production requires no external energy source. This is why discovering how this natural hydrogen originates and how it reacts with the rocks of the Earth’s crust could lead to the exploitation of clean energy naturally present underground. A momentous change, made up of intermediate steps and months of study at the microscope.

" In Paamiut, the researchers collect some samples brought to the surface by work on a construction site near the small airport. An object of study obtained at a stop imposed by the weather and ocean conditions — conditions that make Greenland a remote and complex region still today.

When the sky clears, it’s time to set sail again toward the second stage: Arsuk, five hours of navigation, among fjords and icebergs, further south. Once again, the team expects rain, wind that moves the sea ice and reconfigures the profile of the coast, and rough water. The rock formations that the researchers want to get their hands on are on the small island facing Arsuk. Breaking some test rocks seems to reveal structures similar to those studied in other areas, confirming the presence of hydrogen.

" “In the coming months, we’ll know more after the laboratory studies, but our preliminary observations confirm the preconditions for a potentially important discovery,” explains Alberto Vitale Brovarone, the geologist leading the expedition.

The next stop, on the tiny island of Storø, turns out to be equally surprising. Near a small bay, a rainbow of minerals under the microscope lens shows the effects of contact metamorphism. Underground magmatic activity may also have been caused by the formation of hydrogen, but of a different type. The researchers take notes.

The return to Arsuk allows the team to collect other rocks, near the Ivittuut mine, containing cryolite. In that area, previous research revealed the presence of methane in the rock fluid, which could have reacted perfectly with hydrogen. Another item to add to the backpack. In the end, the researchers collected more than 200 rock samples during the expedition.

A scientific expedition that, hopefully, will add another puzzle piece to the theory of natural hydrogen and increase awareness of the potential to take a significant step — one that is necessary for future generations.