A Recent Fossil Discovery Could Prove Humans Have Been Around For Longer Than We Thought
Matt Reigle - Yesterday 2:56 PM
Researchers in South Africa recently made a major discovery that could potentially alter the previously understood timeline of human existence. According to BBC News, the discovery was that new tests performed on some recovered specimens have revealed that they are much older than previously thought.
Fossils of the early human ancestor Australopithecus africanus recovered from Sterkfontein Caves near Johannesberg, South Africa were thought to have dated back to 2.6 million years ago. However, according to CNN, new testing on the sediments in which the specimens were found has been found to be closer to 3.4 million to 3.7 million years.
This is a substantial difference that changed the time frame that species like Australopithecus africanus were thought to have been in existence and now seems to indicate that they overlapped with other species Australopithecus afarensi, species of which the famous fossil Lucy is part of. Until now, it was thought that Australopithecus africanus had been a descendant of Australopithecus afarensi, but this new information has called that assumption into question.
The New Testing Laid Dating Controversies To Rest
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/technology/a-recent-fossil-discovery-could-prove-humans-have-been-around-for-longer-than-we-thought/ar-AAZ0AiZ?ocid=msedgntp&cvid=cb643d99eb6144b3b957492dcbb0b63e
