4x thinner than a human hair, the diatom is the secret to the Earth’s oxygen supply. Diatoms utilize silica from ground up rock to create new shells which allow them to reproduce. The population of the diatom doubles every single day during their reproduction cycle. Each diatom can perform the process of photosynthesis and provide the world with oxygen as a byproduct, enough oxygen in fact that 1 out of every 2 breaths taken in by every living human being has been created entirely by diatoms. Diatoms aren’t only vital when they are alive, they’re also incredibly important after their deaths because their carcasses slowly fall to the ocean floor and then carpet the ocean floor in a layer 800 meter thick. This phenomenon is often referred to as “marine snow”