Could an Ancient Advanced Civilization Have Existed Before Humans? NASA’s Shocking Silurian Theory Revealed
The paper specifically calls out the Paleocene Eocene Thermal Maximum (PETM) mentioned by Foran. This event involved a major release of carbon, global warming, changes to the ocean’s chemistry, extinction of some animals, and shifts in the lives of other animals. On the surface, this does look similar to the impact humans are presently having on the planet.
But, as the paper itself notes, this similarity is not enough to say that the changes were caused by human-like beings. Natural processes can also cause these changes, like volcanic activity, tectonic changes, and more.
It Goes Even Deeper
The paper also proposes a paradox that further complicates matters. In order to last a long time, a civilization would likely have to become more sustainable. However, the more sustainable a civilization is, the less theoretical damage it does to the planet — and the less damage it does, the harder it becomes to detect.
If there was a fossil fuel-burning civilization that ravaged the planet, there’s a chance it would show up in the historical record. A long-lasting civilization rooted in peaceful coexistence with the planet, in contrast, would probably not leave detectable markers on the historical record.
So, Were There Ancient People?
Foran takes the conclusions of this paper and ties them to stories from ancient people, some of whom claimed there were sea people who assisted them in everyday life.
This is a stretch, to say the least. In order for this to be true, a society would have to be driven into the water around 56 million years ago, then last long enough to encounter early humans around 200,000 to 300,000 years ago — then disappear entirely. There’s simply no evidence that this is the case.
Still, the ideas put forth by the Silurian Hypothesis are enough to keep even the most skeptical scientists up at night. At the end of the day, we just can’t be sure if there were human-like creatures hundreds of millions of years ago that were lost to time.
If you want to shake up your understanding of history even more, take a look at some of the bizarre out-of-time artifacts that have been found across the planet. Then, learn why chicken bones may have our biggest impact on the future archaeological record.
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