Discover: Hadar, Ethiopia

The science of paleoanthropology begins with discoveries in the field. And it is exciting to find a real fossil! The famous fossil "Lucy" was discovered in 1974 by Donald Johanson in the dusty hills of Hadar, Ethiopia. Scientists continue to return to the same area to look for more fossils of our ancient ancestor, Australopithecus afarensis, along with the fossil skeletons of animals that lived around the same time—3.2 million years ago. Follow along as a group of scientists and students trek out to the field in search of fossils!

Image credits Benjamin Reed

What does an anthropologist do?
Answer »

Be part of Ask An Anthropologist

By volunteering, or simply sending us feedback on the site. Scientists, teachers, writers, illustrators, and translators are all important to the program. If you are interested in helping with the website we have a volunteers page to get the process started.

Donate icon  Contribute