Mass-independent fractionation of sulfur can be observed in ancient sediments, where it preserves a signal of the prevailing environmental conditions. The creation and transfer of the mass-independent signature into minerals would be unlikely in an atmosphere containing abundant oxygen, constraining the Great Oxygenation Event to some time after . Prior to this time, the MIS record implies that sulfate-reducing bacteria did not play a significant role in the global sulfur cycle, and that the MIS signal is due primarily to changes in volcanic activity.