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Potential Vikings Site Discovered in North America

A new possible Vikings site has recently been unearthed in the southwest coast of Newfoundland, making it the second Viking site in North America.

The site is located 300 miles south of L'Anse aux Meadows, the only confirmed Nordic warrior settlement in North America unearthed 55 years ago. It is also the first potential discovery after L'Anse aux Meadows and could further prove the European contact with Americans 500 years before Christopher Columbus touched American ground.

According to CNN, space archeologist Sarah Parcak of the University of Alabama scanned infrared images captured from space at a distance of about 400 miles away. She studied the images and looked for signs of discoloration in the soil and possible changes in vegetation on the site.

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Parcak, who was the first among researchers to use satellite imaging in archeological studies, was able to track man-made shapes in the field. The shapes indicated that the inhabitants integrated iron-work in their activities, creating various tools, weapons, and adornments.

"Typically the Norse would collect iron ore from bogs, which are like walnut-size pieces, and they would then roast them and smelt them to create iron," Parcak explained.

Samples of bog iron ore were taken from the Norse site in Point Rosee by Parcak, archeologist Douglas Bolender at the University of Boston, and other international scientists. The samples, along with turf walls, are the only evidence researchers associate with Nordic settlement.

The findings are very important in Viking studies as they further prove the possibility that Vikings once spread around the Americas. Over the years, there has been no data proving that indigenous people in the northern part of America were able to process and create tools using iron ore.

Also, some fake Viking "relics" that emerged over the past years have made experts doubt the subject but Parcak and her team is hopeful that the new site will bring about new information about the Vikings and their early life.

Excavation and research will continue in the summer when Parcak and the rest of the scientists interested in the potential Viking site carry on with their investigations.

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