What and where was the first life on Earth?

The earliest known life forms on Earth are putative fossilized microorganisms found in hydrothermal vent precipitates.[1]The earliest time that life forms first appeared on Earth is at least 3.77 billion years ago, possibly as early as 4.28 billion years,[1]or even 4.5 billion years;[3][4]not long after the oceans formed 4.41 billion years ago, and after the formation of the Earth 4.54 billion years ago.[1][2][5][6]The earliest direct evidence of life on Earth are micro fossils of microorganisms permineralized in 3.465-billion-year-old Australian Apex chert rocks. Read the free article.