18 July 2025 The Future is the Product of the Past

The oldest trace of human activity discovered in North America dates back 23,000 years

A recent fossil footprint found in New Mexico, the United States, indicates that humans existed in North America about 23,000 years ago.

The footprints have been found in the soil in New Mexico’s White Sands National Park. The US Geological Survey experts have examined the top and bottom layers of the track with the help of radiocarbon dating and found that footprints were formed here during about two thousand years.

Bournemouth University has shared information on the astounding finding of human existence. Until recently, it was thought that humans first appeared on the American continent between 13 and 16 thousand years ago, but new discovery reveals that Homo sapiens arrived considerably earlier, around 23 thousand years ago. This latest discovery is being considered a major archaeological success in the United States.

Dating was done by Drs Jeff Pigati and Kathleen Springer of the US Geological Survey. Kathleen Springer on the subject, “Our dates on the seeds are tightly clustered and maintain stratigraphic order above and below multiple footprint horizons – this was a remarkable outcome.” This corresponds to the height of the last glacial cycle, during something known as the Last Glacial Maximum, and makes them the oldest known human footprints in the Americas,” she said.

Showing the different “time periods” of the last ice age, and before the sand dunes formed, White Sands would have looked like a mix of grasslands and wetlands surrounding the great ancient Lake Otero. Karen Carr
Showing the different “time periods” of the last ice age, and before the sand dunes formed, White Sands would have looked like a mix of grasslands and wetlands surrounding the great ancient Lake Otero. Karen Carr

The footprints tell a fascinating story about life at the period, with the tracks mostly made by teens and younger children, with the rare adult judged by their size. There are also mammoth, gigantic ground sloth, dire wolves, and bird tracks at the site.

The tracks at White Sands were first discovered by David Bustos Resources Manager at the National Park. The team also pioneered non-invasive geophysical techniques to help locate the site.

Tommy Urban, from Cornell University, said, “Detection and imaging with non-destructive technology have greatly expanded our capacity to study these remarkable footprints in their broader context”.

Human Footprints. NPS Photo

Previously, it was assumed that people arrived in America considerably later, following the melting of the North American ice sheets, which opened up migration routes. However, the imprints now suggest that people arrived in the Americas far earlier.

Professor Vance Holliday of the University of Arizona said, “There has been a lot of debate over many years about the first peopling of the Americas with several early sites identified.  Few archaeologists see reliable evidence for sites older than about 16,000 years. The White Sands tracks provide a much earlier date.”  

The research is published in Science.

The research was undertaken by researchers from Bournemouth University, the National Park Service, the U.S. Geological Survey, Cornell University, and the University of Arizona.

Bournemouth University

Related Articles

1,700-Year-Old Roman Ringstone Depicting Goddess Athena Discovered at Assos

30 August 2024

30 August 2024

A Roman Imperial Period ringstone depicting Athena, the mother goddess of the Assos ancient city, has been discovered in the...

A 4,000-year-old treasure map of France’s

17 October 2023

17 October 2023 1

Overlooked for millennia, a rock fragment adorned with enigmatic inscriptions has emerged as a valuable “treasure map” for archaeologists. After...

Rare Roman Marble Sarcophagus Depicting Dionysus and Hercules Discovered in Caesarea, Israel — A First of Its Kind

9 June 2025

9 June 2025

A rare Roman-era marble sarcophagus featuring a vivid scene of a mythological drinking contest between Dionysus, the god of wine,...

AI Unlocks Ancient Secrets: Dead Sea Scrolls May Be Centuries Older Than Previously Thought

8 June 2025

8 June 2025

New research blends cutting-edge artificial intelligence with advanced radiocarbon dating and offers a transformative perspective on the origins of the...

Shackled skeleton identified as rare evidence of slavery found in Rutland

7 June 2021

7 June 2021

In Rutland, archaeologists discovered an ‘unusual’ skeleton of a Roman slave, who might have been a criminal sentenced to death....

Archaeologists conducting excavations at the Roman Fort of Apsaros in Georgia, found evidence of the Legion X Fretensis

27 May 2023

27 May 2023

Polish scientists discovered that Legion X Fretensis, known for its brutal suppression of Jewish uprisings, was stationed in the early...

Alexander the Great’s Sacred Purple Tunic Found in a 2,400-year-old Macedonian Tomb?

29 October 2024

29 October 2024

Archaeologists have found a sacred chiton (tunic) in a 2400-year-old royal tomb in the Macedonian city of Vergina in northern...

The Latest Surprises Revealed by Investigations Inside the Tomb of Cerberus in Giugliano

24 July 2024

24 July 2024

The latest surprise revealed by investigations at the Tomb of Cerberus in Giugliano: The remains of a corpse covered with...

A Little-Known Civilization in the Americas Built Pyramids as Old as Ancient Egypt

26 June 2022

26 June 2022

Considered the cradle of civilization in the Americas, the Sacred City of Caral-Supe is a 5000-year-old archaeological site, situated on...

A Roman copper-alloy tiny tortoise figurine found in Suffolk

3 December 2023

3 December 2023

In July last year, a small Roman copper alloy tortoise or turtle figurine was discovered by metal detectors near the...

Researchers Found Evidence in Ethiopia of a Human Population that Survived the Eruption of the Toba Supervolcano 74,000 Years Ago

22 March 2024

22 March 2024

Researchers working in the Horn of Africa, also known as the Somali Peninsula have uncovered evidence showing how Middle Stone...

16th-Century Compass Possibly Belonging to Nicolaus Copernicus Unearthed in Poland’s Frombork

8 August 2024

8 August 2024

Researchers have discovered a 16th-century compass that is thought to have been used by astronomer Nicolaus Copernicus in the canonical...

Ancient Greeks Built a Road to Haul Cargo Overland: The Father of the Railway: Diolkos

6 May 2024

6 May 2024

The Diolkos, an ambitious road that crossed the entire Isthmus of Corinth and was partially paved with stone, was built...

The Metropolitan Museum of Art Celebrates 151th Anniversary of Its Establishment

13 April 2021

13 April 2021

The Metropolitan Museum of Art, one of the few museums in the world, celebrates the 151st anniversary of its establishment....

A cemetery belonging to 54 children was found during the excavation in the old quarry in Diyarbakır, Türkiye

4 January 2024

4 January 2024

During the archaeological excavation carried out in the area considered to be an old quarry in the Kulp district of...