All posts tagged: ancient civilization

Bombshell NASA photo shows ‘pyramid same size as Giza’ on Mars | Science | News

Bombshell NASA photo shows ‘pyramid same size as Giza’ on Mars | Science | News

Published by Sam Flores

He believes the structure could be artificial, reports MailOnline. He said: “Were this found anywhere on Earth, we’d surely be digging into it.” Filmmaker Brian Dodds recently shared the images and said the structure was “the size of the Great Pyramid in Egypt”. And while he admits it’s far from proof of ancient life on Mars, he says it does raise questions about whether or not another species could have once inhabited the planet. The “pyramid” is located in Candor Chasma, one of the largest canyons in the Valles Marineris canyon range. The range stretches almost a quarter of the circumference of Mars. It is thought that Valles Marineris was formed by a series of rift faults and later became enlarged due to erosion and collapsing of the rift walls. Nasa spacecraft are thought to have captured the pyramid-like structure on four occasions between 2001 and 2016. They say it has maintained a three-sided symmetry on each occasion, despite differences in lighting, image quality and seasonal conditions. Mars researcher George Haas has also backed the …

1.9 million-year-old finding points to the earliest evidence of humans outside of Africa

1.9 million-year-old finding points to the earliest evidence of humans outside of Africa

Published by Jenni Sidey

When a stone sits on the Earth’s surface, cosmic rays quietly pepper it, leaving behind rare isotopes like tiny time stamps. Bury the stone deep enough, and that cosmic “printing press” shuts off. From there, those isotopes decay in a predictable way. In geology, that is as close as you get to a stopwatch. That stopwatch, along with two other independent clocks, has helped researchers build a sharper timeline for ‘Ubeidiya, an early prehistoric site in Israel’s Jordan Valley. The site has long mattered to anyone trying to map how early humans moved beyond Africa. A new study argues the site is at least 1.9 million years old, older than many past estimates and among the earliest known records of early humans outside Africa. The work was led by Prof. Ari Matmon of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Prof. Omry Barzilai of Haifa University, and Prof. Miriam Belmaker of the University of Tulsa. Their approach leaned on three dating methods that ask the same question in different ways: how old are the sediments and artifacts …

New DNA study reveals Beachy Head Woman was local to Roman Britain

New DNA study reveals Beachy Head Woman was local to Roman Britain

Published by Jenni Sidey

A young woman who lived nearly two millennia ago along the southern coast of England has been the center of scientific controversy for more than the last decade. We know her name as the Beachy Head Woman, and when her skeletal remains were discovered, they were considered to be from either sub-Saharan Africa or from the Mediterranean region. However, recent comprehensive genetic analyses have concluded that she has ancestry much closer to home. In an article published in the Journal of Archaeological Science, researchers from University College London and the Natural History Museum have demonstrated conclusively that the Beachy Head Woman is descended from the local population living in southern Britain at the time of the Roman occupation. This conclusion is based on the largest and most detailed analyses of the DNA from her skeletal remains that have been performed to date. It contradicts earlier conclusions reached using only skeletal morphology and very limited amounts of genetic data. According to Dr. William Marsh of the Natural History Museum, who oversaw this latest study, the application …