Results: Incredible things revealed by extreme weather

A PREHISTORIC FOREST: Wild weather at Cardigan Bay in Wales periodically strips away sand and uncovers an unusual sight: an ancient forest of tree stumps. In 2014 an especially powerful set of storms exposed much of the forest, giving us amazing views of the ancient trees, which died over 4500 years ago as sea levels rose and salt water inundated the land. Archaeologists also found a wooden walkway dating to between 3000 and 4000 years ago; perhaps the local people built it in an attempt to deal with rising seas. Is this the first time you are reading (or hearing) about the prehistoric forest in Wales?

A HUGE WOODEN STEAMBOAT: The steamboat Montana, built in 1882, was the largest ship that ever traveled on the Missouri River. But she lasted just two years before she struck an underground tree and was sunk. During a severe 2012 drought, water levels in the Missouri dropped low enough to expose the enormous wreck. Have you ever seen the steamboat named Montana?

A NEOLITHIC TOWN: In 1850, a tremendous squall hit the Orkney Isles in northern Scotland. It stripped grass and dirt from a large, lumpy knoll known as Skerrabra and revealed something amazing. The knoll was actually an ancient town. This settlement, known as Skara Brae, dated back to 3200-2200 BCE. It gave archaeologists a glimpse into Scotland's remarkable ancient past: Skara Brae's inhabitants raised sheep and cows, feasted on now-extinct great auks, and slept on beds filled with heather. Are you familiar with these facts about this Neolithic Town in Scotland?

UN-EXPLODED SHELLS FROM WORLD WAR II: Explosives from past wars can still be found in our seas, and bad weather sometimes washes them ashore. In 2012, for example, crews in New Jersey found two UN-exploded shells while combing the beach after Super-storm Sandy. And in 2014, the Royal Navy was called in to examine a shell on a beach in Devon, England. Have you ever discovered any old explosives (or shells) in the surrounding area where you live?

THE OLDEST HUMAN FOOTPRINTS OUTSIDE OF AFRICA: In 2013, strong storms and erosion at Happisburgh, England cleared away sand and revealed curious depressions in mud. Archaeologists determined that they were human footprints (the oldest ever found outside of Africa). These people who made the footprints belonged to a different species of Homo than our own, and they lived between 1 million and 0.78 million years ago. Do you think the oldest human footprints is an interesting discovery?