Humans Arrived in Australia 18,000 Years Earlier Than Previously Thought

New evidence shows that humans arrived in Australia 18,000 years earlier than previously believed. Based on findings from a study published on Thursday, July 20, stone tools and axes discovered in a cave in northern Australia indicate that humans reached Australia around 65,000 years ago, 18,000 years earlier than previously thought. According to Reuters, a special technology called "Optically Stimulated Luminescence" was used to date these stone tools found in a shelter on the slopes of a cliff in a vast plain 300 kilometers east of Darwin. This new discovery pushes back the timeline of Aboriginal habitation, the oldest human population that has continuously resided in one location, by thousands of years. Until now, the scientific community believed that their arrival and settlement in Australia occurred about 47,000 years ago. Chris Clarkson, the lead researcher, told Australia's National Radio that this also pushes back the timeline for the exit of modern humans from Africa. According to Clarkson, scientists believe that modern humans left Africa between 60,000 and 100,000 years ago. He added, "Since Australia was the endpoint of these humans' migration, we can now use these new discoveries as a point of origin, and thus it can be said that modern humans must have left Africa earlier than this date (65,000 years ago)." The results of this research group led by Chris Clarkson were published in the scientific journal Nature. This journal's last month's issue included articles that completely transform our understanding of the history and origin of modern humans. Recent studies in Morocco have uncovered fossils dating back 300,000 years, which are about 100,000 years older than any previously discovered remains of modern humans. The Australian research group also used carbon dating technology, which can date back to a maximum of 50,000 years, and the "Optically Stimulated Luminescence" technology, which examined the age of 28,500 grains of sand found at the excavation site using laser light. Andy Harris, a professor of planetary science and ancient geology at the University of Melbourne, who was not personally involved in this research, stated, "In previous archaeological excavations, there was no possibility of using new technologies to accurately date the remains. The problem in previous research was that only a few old stones were identified, but in the new research, it has become clear that human habitation in these areas was much more extensive."