A normal magnetostratigraphic polarity interval in the Main Ethiopian Rift at 1.6 Ma: Implications for Acheulean and Homo erectus chronology

Research at Melka Kunture, Ethiopia, reveals that the Garba IV Homo erectus and Acheulean tools date to approximately 1.6 million years ago (Ma), challenging earlier estimates of >1.95–2 Ma. The study leverages magnetostratigraphy, argon dating, and tephrostratigraphic correlations to identify a normal polarity interval linked to the Gilsá geomagnetic excursion. This finding refines the chronology of early human evolution in the Main Ethiopian Rift, suggesting that such short-lived magnetic events can be detected with high-resolution sampling in sedimentary sequences.

Suwa, G., Katoh, S., Hyodo, M., WoldeGabriel, G., Hart, W. K., Delagnes, A., Asfaw, B., & Beyene, Y. (2025). A normal magnetostratigraphic polarity interval in the Main Ethiopian Rift at 1.6 Ma: Implications for Acheulean and Homo erectus chronology. Journal of Human Evolution, 207, 103748. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhevol.2025.103748