“Every Living Thing Traces Back to This Ancient Creature”: Scientists Reveal a Common Ancestor Older Than We Ever Imagined, Shocking the Scientific World

IN A NUTSHELL 🌍 LUCA, the Last Universal Common Ancestor, is believed to have lived 4.2 billion years ago, much earlier than previously thought. 🧬 Researchers used phylogenetic analysis to determine LUCA’s age, employing genetic mutations as a molecular clock. 🌊 LUCA likely thrived in an extreme aquatic environment, contributing to Earth’s primitive ecosystem. 🔍