Scientists have introduced a revolutionary dating technique using Thulium-169 isotopes in a study featured in Science Advances. Unlike traditional Carbon-14 dating, which can have an error margin of several decades, this new methodology measures the accumulation of rare earth elements in submerged organic materials to provide annual-scale precision.
The technique was tested on underwater wooden foundations off the coast of Israel, allowing researchers to pinpoint the exact years of site expansion and abandonment between 6200 and 6100 BCE. This level of resolution allows archaeologists to correlate ancient urban movements directly with specific short-term climate events recorded in ice cores, transforming our understanding of Neolithic societal resilience.