A new study led by Nicole Misarti of Oregon State University’s College of Earth, Ocean, and Atmospheric Sciences published in the journal Quaternary Science Reviews on June 21, 2012 is the first concrete proof that Asians could have migrated into parts of Alaska 1500 to 2000 years earlier than present theories suggest.
Data from the Sanak Island Biocomplexity Project including ice core thickness, organic matter analysis, and pollen content all indicate the potential for the “First Americans” to have arrived in Alaska as early as 15,000 years ago.
The maximum thickness of the ice sheet in the Sanak Island region during the last glacial maximum was found to be 70 meters. This fact in itself is sufficient evidence that a coastal pathway for migration from Asia into North America and South America existed 2,000 years earlier that presently thought.
The existence of well-documented archaeological sites at Monte Verde, Chile, and Huaca Prieta, Peru, that date to 14,000 and 14,200 years ago are proposed as corroborative evidence of an earlier first crossing time frame.
Radiocarbon dating of the organic content of the ice cores indicated that salmon and other sea life were abundant in the waters around Sanak Island 16,500 to 17,000 years ago.
Pollen from the ice cores indicated dry tundra vegetation existed in the same region 16,300 years ago.
The evidence suggests a small corridor, about 40 miles from the coast of the western Alaska Peninsula, that could have been the route that the first Asians used to come to the Americas.
The research was reviewed at the Eureka Alert web site on June 21, 2012.
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