US researchers looking underwater in the Gulf of Mexico in search of first Americans

C. Andrew Hemmings, research associate of the Texas Archeological Research Laboratory (TARL) at The University of Texas at Austin, will lead an underwater archeological expedition July 30 to Aug. 12 in the Gulf of Mexico to search for submerged evidence of the first Americans.
- The archeological record is out there, it's just underwater. The study's findings will contribute to our understanding of early humans in North America, including the timing of their arrival, lifestyles and migration patterns, and could add further proof that the peopling of the western hemisphere was a lengthier and more complicated process than is typically believed, Hemmings says.

In shallow depths, divers will inspect sites to collect artifacts and recover soils for radiocarbon dating. At deeper locations, the research team will use remotely operated vehicles and remote sensing tools to explore submerged sites and search for fossil remains and stone artifacts.

- We will start our investigation in shallow areas available to Clovis people 12 to 13,000 years ago, and then proceed to older, deeper landscapes that could have only been inhabited by people older than Clovis,Hemmings says.