already worked on excavations in Alaska and Siberia I was predisposed to extreme environments she says Telling me that I'd have to do climbing that it would be underground and that it would be strange and potentially dangerous it appealed Berger expected very few applications but 57 people from around the world responded within ten days Following a series of Skype interviews Berger selected Elliott and five other female scientists Elen Feuerriegel K Lindsay Eaves Alia Gurtov Hannah Morris and Becca Peixotto would be joining Elliott Women had once been discouraged from becoming scientists but this group would soon help Berger make exciting discoveries Fossils Found Because Berger had made a 2008 cave find in the Cradle of Humankind he believed other local caves might house fossils as well He asked South African cavers to keep their eyes open as they explored In Rising Star Cave in 2013 Steven Tucker and Rick Hunter THE CRADLE OF HUMANKIND Located in South Africa the Cradle of Humankind is a United Nations World climbed a rockfall that formed a Heritage site Scientists believe this is where humankind developed over a period steep ridge Tucker slipped into of four million years Forty percent of human ancestor fossils have been found a crack and pointed his toes to in the Cradle of Humankind Other finds here include stone tools and fossils of plants and animals squeeze through the tight passage into a chamber When Tucker saw bones on the floor he realized
A small discovery by two cavers led Berger to a larger expedition in Rising Star Cave they were not from a bat or other small animal He suspected they had found something important Tucker photographed a jawbone before leaving the cave The cavers took this photo to Berger Even from a photograph Berger knew the bone belonged to a human relative But Berger knew he could never slip through a passage that narrowed to seven inches 18 cm wide He had to find scientists small enough so he turned to social media to get the word out Before the crew could enter Rising Star Cave cavers ran safety lines and fiber optic cables mounting cameras and lights Only the six women would be allowed to enter the fossil chamber but they would be accompanied as far as possible by cavers who would help ensure their safety From
above Berger and other scientists would watch them work via the camera feeds providing advice and help along the way Despite these precautions the scientists would be making a hazardous climb In recognition of their dedication to science Berger nicknamed them the underground astronauts Fossils Brought to Light Because the chamber was small only three of the scientists would descend at a time The first group to make the journey included Elliott Peixotto and Morris When she first saw the chute that dropped into the bone filled chamber Elliott questioned taking the job It's a long crack punctuated by shark teeth protrusions I remember looking down and thinking I'm not sure I made the right decision After making it through the chute Elliott entered the chamber It was topped with stalactites and smooth cave rock called flowstone Below on the ground were the fossils Elliott compared the sight with Egyptologist Howard Carter first gazing into the gold filled treasure chamber of pharaoh Tutankhamen's unlooted tomb When asked what he saw Carter replied Things wondrous things This time the scientists seeing wondrous things were women Fossils may look similar to stone but they are fragile To bring up the jawbone the scientists slipped it into a plastic bag wrapped the bag in Bubble Wrap and placed the bundle in a plastic box Elliott carried it to the surface turning it over to Berger The original photo of the jawbone had no scale so it was impossible to tell how big the fossil was Because of this Berger was surprised that it was much too small to be an Australopithecus an extinct
Scientists and paleontologists above ground guided the work of the scientists excavating Rising Star Cave below ground
