Scientists think they could have come across the location of the world's oldest campfire - and it's over a million years old. Flint tools and animal bones had been excavated from a quarry in Israel, thought to have been inhabited by our ancient ancestors, Homo erectus. Researchers investigated the ability of these artefacts to absorb ultraviolet (UV) and infrared (IR) radiation – which is affected by burning. They compared the results to those from similar unburnt materials, and concluded that they had been heated to temperatures between 390 F (200 C) and 1100 F (600 C). The team from the Weizmann Institute of Science in Israel also analysed bits of tusk from of an elephant-like animal that had been found in the same sedimentary layer as the tools.

An artificial intelligence tool has revealed hidden evidence of ancient fire at a 1-million-year-old archaeological site in Israel. Applying the technology at other sites could revolutionise our understanding of when and where humans first began controlling fire, which is widely considered to be one of the most significant innovations of all time. Archaeologists already have a few techniques for identifying whether ancient humans used fire. For instance, you can look for signs that prehistoric bones are discoloured – or that stone tools are warped – in a way that is consistent with exposure to temperatures of 450 C or more. But this sort of evidence is rarely found at sites that are more than 500,000 years old.