VALPARAISO | When Valparaiso University geology professor Ronald Janke examined core samples of regional dunes, the results were so staggering, they turned many theories of land formation and colonization on their head.

Janke conducted research on the Kankakee Sand Islands, a series of hundreds of small, moon-shaped dunes that stretch from the southern tips of Lake and Porter counties in Northwest Indiana into northeastern Illinois. He found that the way they formed was not from the glaciers, as originally thought.

In fact, the glacier wasn't here at all.

"The last time these sand samples saw sunlight was about 14,000 to 15,000 years ago and we thought these dunes formed when the glacier melted, but now we know they're too old for that, since the glacier melted only 10,000 years ago," Janke said.

The sand islands weren't formed by the glacier, but instead came from Lake Michigan, prior to the existence of the Great Lakes.

"They came by wind, in bands. The ice was here, it then melted and the sand islands formed, and then the ice came back to form Lake Michigan," he said.

So what does this evidence mean? Well, said Janke, a lot.

This supports the new theory among some scientists that man migrated to North American from Europe rather than Asia over the Bering Strait. We used to think, how could Europeans come over the ocean when it was all ice here, but now we know, it wasn't ice then," Janke said.

In fact, North America, and this region specifically, was rather balmy.

"The climate then would be like Arizona is today. So not only was there no glacier here then, but it was warm," he said.

Janke said there are correlations between his research findings and other theories on early man in the Midwest. Janke's research supports research showing that North American Clovis points, a particular type of arrowhead that represents the oldest man-made object on the continent, identically match arrowheads found in Europe that were made by humans at approximately the same time.

Plus, Janke's research correlates with other newer theories on glacial history.

"There is a new theory that a meteorite hit the polar ice cap and this happened at the same time as our findings, which would support why the glaciers melted. Our research on the sand islands supports other new theories," he said.