Atmosphere of Triton from NASA. Atmosphere of Triton The atmosphere of Triton is the layer of gases surrounding Triton. The surface pressure is only 14 microbars (0.014 hPa or 1 mmHg), of the surface pressure on Earth, and it is composed of nitrogen, similar to those of Titan and Earth. It extends 800 kilometers above its surface. Recent observations have shown an increase in temperature. Nitrogen is the main gas in Triton's atmosphere. The two other known components are methane and carbon monoxide, whose abundances are a few hundredths of a percent of that of the nitrogen. Carbon monoxide, which was discovered only
Reducing atmosphere had a reducing atmosphere, along with Mars and Venus. This would have proven to be a good environment for "Cyanobacteria" to evolve the first photosynthetic metabolic pathways which gradually increased the oxygen portion of the atmosphere, changing it to what is known as an oxidizing atmosphere. With increased levels of oxygen, the evolution of the more efficient aerobic respiration might have been enabled, allowing animal life to evolve and thrive. Though most scientists conceive of the early atmosphere as reducing, a 2011 article in "Nature" found that cerium oxidation in zircon—which comprises the oldest rocks on Earth at roughly 4.4