Humans may have used the ‘Ice Highway’ to leave Asia and colonize North America – Green Savers

In the world of archaeology, it is believed that humans first arrived in North America, coming from Asia, about 13 thousand years ago, through an ice-free corridor that, at that time, connected the two continents, as the ice melted. It ended up being flooded with ice, creating the current Bering Strait.

However, despite the consensus of many archaeologists, this theory faces opposition from a growing group of scientists who argue that the colonization of North America occurred much earlier, using as one of their main arguments the fact that human footprints dating back 23 thousand years have Found. Discovered years ago in New Mexico.

These scientists believe that ancient humans traveled south of the Bering Passage, walking on ice along the Pacific coast of the North American continent, instead of using the land corridor, which at that time was still covered in ice.

In an investigation filed on December 15 in Annual Conference of the American Geophysical UnionA team led by Summer Pretorius suggests that humans walked on sea ice to reach North America.

By reconstructing environmental conditions several thousand years ago, primarily through analysis of plankton fossils in sediments on the sea floor, these researchers indicate that ocean currents in the Beringia region were, 20,000 years ago, almost twice as strong as they appear today. They explain In a statement, “due to icy winds and lower sea levels.”

Although it would not be impossible to paddle across these currents, it would not be an easy task. Moreover, paleoclimate models created by her team show that this region was covered by ice until 15,000 years ago, so it is likely that humans, “rather than having to paddle against this terrible glacial current, might have used sea ice,” Pretorius says. shelf” or “as a self-residence for sea ice”.

By drawing comparisons with people living in the Arctic today, the team suggests that early Americans used ice shelves to hunt marine mammals, thus enduring the long, slow journey to North America.

In this way, and based on the models created, the Summer Praetorius team believes that there were two periods in which it was possible to cross Beringia through ice: 24,500 to 22,000 years ago, and 16,400 to 14,800 years ago.

But they admit that proving that humans used ice to cross from Asia to North America “will be complicated, because most of the archaeological sites are underwater.” But despite this, they believe the data could open new lines of investigation and enrich debate, and the sea ice crossing hypothesis does not rule out other types of crossing, Praetorius says.

“Nothing is off the table. We will always be surprised by the ingenuity of ancient humans.”