Current:Home > MarketsScientists say they've confirmed fossilized human footprints found in New Mexico are between 21,000 and 23,000 years old-InfoLens
Scientists say they've confirmed fossilized human footprints found in New Mexico are between 21,000 and 23,000 years old
View Date:2024-12-23 11:24:14
Scientists have confirmed that fossilized footprints found in New Mexico are between 21,000 and 23,000 years old — meaning humans existed in North America much earlier than previously believed.
The originally study about the footprints, discovered embedded in the ground of White Sands National Park in New Mexico, was published in September 2021, sparking conversations, with some questioning the accuracy of the findings.
It was believed humans existed in North America somewhere between 13,500 and 16,000 years ago. So, were the prints — some of which look distinctly human with five toes — really between 21,000 and 23,000 years old?
Researchers from the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) and other scientist decided to do a follow-up study, using two new approaches to determine the age of the prints.
"The immediate reaction in some circles of the archeological community was that the accuracy of our dating was insufficient to make the extraordinary claim that humans were present in North America during the Last Glacial Maximum," said co-author of the new study, Jeff Pigati, a USGS research geologist. "But our targeted methodology in this current research really paid off,"
The scientists initially used seeds from the Ruppia cirrhosa plant found in the fossils. They used radiocarbon dating to determine the age of the seeds, but because the plants are aquatic and can hold carbon from the water instead of the air, the age estimate could have been off.
So, in the new study, they used radiocarbon dating on conifer pollen, which comes from plants on earth, that were found in the same layers as the seeds. "Even as the original work was being published, we were forging ahead to test our results with multiple lines of evidence," said co-author Kathleen Springer, a USGS research geologist. "We were confident in our original ages, as well as the strong geologic, hydrologic, and stratigraphic evidence, but we knew that independent chronologic control was critical."
The researchers had to isolate a whopping 75,000 pollen grains from the same layer and found that their age was statistically identical to the Ruppia cirrhosa seeds.
To further check their dating, they also tested quartz grains found in the footprints using a different dating process, optically stimulated luminescence. They found the quartz had a minimum age of about 21,500 years.
USGS says with three corroborating pieces of evidence, it is unlikely the age range of 21,000 to 23,000 years is incorrect.
Footprints have been found at White Sands before, according to the National Park Service. After first finding footprints in a lakebed in 2006, scientists later dug them up and found both human and sloth footprints. They later found direwolf prints and dated those 18,000 years by using ancient seeds found nearby. They also found footprints of a female and a toddler in 2018.
In 2018, researchers discovered what they believe to be footprints of a female. They tell a story that may seem familiar today; her footprints show her walking for almost a mile, with a toddler's footprints occasionally showing up beside hers. Evidence suggests that she carried the child, shifting them from side to side and occasionally setting the child down as they walked. The footprints broadened and slipped in the mud as a result of the additional weight she was carrying.
The 2021 study found the footprints mainly belong to teens and children, which may be due to a division of labor, with teens performing "fetching and carrying tasks" and children accompanying them.
Caitlin O'KaneCaitlin O'Kane is a digital content producer covering trending stories for CBS News and its good news brand, The Uplift.
veryGood! (2182)
Related
- What Republicans are saying about Matt Gaetz’s nomination for attorney general
- Lawmakers Want Answers on Damage and Costs Linked to Idled ‘Zombie’ Coal Mines
- Five U.S. bars make World's 50 Best Bars list, three of them in New York City
- Fantasy Fest kicks off in Key West with 10 days of masquerades, parties and costume competitions
- Biden, Harris participate in Veterans Day ceremony | The Excerpt
- Discovery of 189 decaying bodies in Colorado funeral home suggests families received fake ashes
- Abreu, Alvarez and Altuve power Astros’ rout of Rangers in Game 4 to even ALCS
- Judge temporarily halts Trump's limited gag order in election interference case
- Mattel says it ‘deeply’ regrets misprint on ‘Wicked’ dolls packaging that links to porn site
- Police arrest 2 in connection with 2021 Lake Tahoe-area shooting that killed a man, wounded his wife
Ranking
- 2025 NFL Draft order: Updated first round picks after Week 10 games
- Rolling Stones and Lady Gaga give stunning performance at intimate album release show
- In Lebanon, thousands are displaced from border towns by clashes, stretching state resources
- Thomas’ tying homer, Moreno’s decisive hit send D-backs over Phillies 6-5, ties NLCS at 2 games
- Kathy Bates likes 'not having breasts' after her cancer battle: 'They were like 10 pounds'
- Muslim organization's banquet canceled after receiving bomb threats
- SAG-AFTRA issues Halloween costume guidance for striking actors
- Woman’s dog accidentally eats meth while on walk, she issues warning to other pet owners
Recommendation
-
Kirk Herbstreit berates LSU fans throwing trash vs Alabama: 'Enough is enough, clowns'
-
Spain’s leader mulls granting amnesty to thousands of Catalan separatists in order to stay in power
-
Bomb and death threats prompt major Muslim group to move annual banquet
-
U.S. winter outlook: Wetter South, warmer North and more potential climate extremes, NOAA says
-
Chris Evans Shares Thoughts on Starting a Family With Wife Alba Baptista
-
Man fined $50K in Vermont for illegally importing carvings made of sperm whale teeth, walrus tusk
-
What Joran van der Sloot's confession reveals about Natalee Holloway's death
-
Florida man sentenced to 1 year in federal prison for trying to run over 6 Black men