A study reveals the arrival of the Vikings to the Americas about 500 years before the arrival of Columbus

60 years ago, two Norwegian explorers discovered an archaeological site called ‘L’ Anse aux Meadows’ in the northeast of the country. Canada. There, they found traces of at least seven houses, very similar to those made by the Vikings. The researchers also found several objects that were definitely Vikings, such as the bronze cufflink they used to tie their coats.

It is the only Viking archaeological site found on the American continent, and today it is a tourist attraction. Scientists have been trying for years to understand at what point in history they inhabited this place.

The new research looked at three pieces of wood used in construction. To find out the age of a piece of wood, scientists analyze the concentration of carbon-14. It works like this: During its lifetime each tree absorbs carbon-14 from the atmosphere. When the tree dies, the opposite happens, each year losing carbon-14 by the same amount.

So if scientists find out how much carbon-14 is left in the dead tree, they know when the tree was cut down.

In an interview with the Journal Nacional, Dutch geologist Michael Dee, one of those responsible for the research, said that this method is not very accurate, but a new discovery has given scientists the ability to know exactly when the tree was cut down, because at some moments in history, there have been solar storms rare. The eruptions on the Sun increased the concentration of carbon-14 on Earth in that period.

Under the microscope, the researcher noticed that the wood showed signs of a solar storm that occurred in 992. The trees form a new ring every year. So the researchers determined that the tree was cut down by a Viking ax precisely in 1021, exactly a thousand years ago, the time of the existence of this village.

A hundred years ago, Vikings colonized Iceland, A small island in the North Atlantic Ocean. Icelandic epic stories written in the 13th century tell of an explorer named Leif Eriksson, who was to leave Iceland and find a new world.

Researchers think it’s “L’ Anse aux Meadows.” Epic stories tell of encounters with indigenous peoples, but no one knows how many of the fantastic novels are myth or reality.

Studies show that a group of 100 people lived there for up to 13 years and then abandoned everything and moved to green land.

Michael Dee says we now have at least one fact: a history of this fairy tale, which proves that 470 years before Christopher Columbus reached America, the Vikings were the first Europeans to reach the New World.