Evidence of humans in North America during the Last Glacial Maximum

Archaeologists and researchers in allied fields have long sought to understand human colonization of North America. Questions remain about when and how people migrated, where they originated, and how their arrival affected the established fauna and landscape. Here, we present evidence from excavated surfaces in White Sands National Park (New Mexico, United States), where multiple in situ human footprints are stratigraphically constrained and bracketed by seed layers that yield calibrated radiocarbon ages between similar to 23 and 21 thousand years ago. These findings confirm the presence of humans in North America during the Last Glacial Maximum, adding evidence to the antiquity of human colonization of the Americas and providing a temporal range extension for the coexistence of early inhabitants and Pleistocene megafauna.

Automated summary

Researchers excavated in White Sands National Park in New Mexico, United States, and discovered in situ human footprints dating back to approximately 23,000 to 21,000 years ago, confirming human presence in North America during the Last Glacial Maximum. This evidence adds to the understanding of the antiquity of human colonization of the Americas and extends the temporal range for the coexistence of early inhabitants and Pleistocene megafauna.