What modern fossils will be the 'most surprising' to future explorers?

Millions of years from now, the remnants of today’s world will be buried beneath layers of rock and sediment. While fossils of ancient creatures have long fascinated scientists, we are likely to leave behind a new kind of fossil in the future – one shaped by human activity.

These “technofossils” include everything from plastic bottles and old mobile phones to the most unexpected of all – the blades of wind turbines.

The idea that everyday objects could become fossils may seem strange. People associate fossils with dinosaur bones, ancient trees, and primitive sea creatures – not with discarded technology.

However, researchers have started to realize that the impact of human-made materials will last far longer than many natural formations. The structures we build and the items we use daily will leave a lasting imprint on the Earth’s geological record, creating a new chapter in the history of fossilization.

How human-made objects become fossils

Fossilization is a slow and selective process. For an object to become a fossil, it must be buried under sediment, shielded from decay, and eventually mineralized over time.

Most organic materials decompose before they have a chance to fossilize, but some artificial materials resist natural breakdown.

Plastics, synthetic fabrics, and certain composites are particularly durable. They do not degrade easily, which makes them prime candidates for future fossils.

The layers of waste accumulating in landfills today could, under the right conditions, transform into well-preserved remnants of the Anthropocene epoch – the age of human influence on Earth.

University of Leicester paleontologists Professor Sarah Gabbott and Professor Jan Zalasiewicz have explored this idea in depth.

In their book Discarded: How Technofossils Will be Our Ultimate Legacy, they examine how the products of modern life will be preserved for millennia. These objects will tell the story of a civilization defined by industry, technology, and mass consumption.

Fossilized wind turbine blades

Among all the potential technofossils, wind turbine blades stand out as among the most surprising. These towering structures symbolize clean energy, yet their long-term environmental fate remains uncertain.

Unlike the metal towers that hold them aloft, turbine blades are produced from materials that are difficult to recycle, making them far more likely to persist in the geological record.

“The fossils won’t be of the towers, by and large – those are made of metal, which can be recycled. The enormous wind turbine blades, though, are made of materials like fibreglass and epoxy resin and carbon fibres, which are terribly hard to recycle – but easy to fossilize,“ explained Professor Zalasiewicz.

“As wind turbines reach end-of-life and are decommissioned, huge landfills of the 50 meter-long-plus blades, sliced into truck-length segments and neatly stacked side by side, are appearing and growing.”

“Some will stay buried for millions of years – and, if finally erosion-revealed and stumbled upon by some curious far-future palaeontologist, will be an amazing sight, like a graveyard of gigantic, hollow, sawn-up bones.”

“Some may be squashed and crumpled by earth movements, and others may be filled with mineral growths, but their striking shape and enormous size will shine out of the strata.”

Piecing together the past

Future scientists may one day stumble upon these massive fossils and wonder about their origins.

Just as modern paleontologists reconstruct dinosaur skeletons from fragmented bones, these wind turbine fossils could present a mystery for researchers in the distant future. Their aerodynamic design might hint at their original purpose, but without historical records, their function could remain uncertain.

“For our far-future explorers, they will be a huge puzzle – will they be able to tell that they were built to catch the wind, and to provide energy that is clean and renewable? Perhaps they will, if they can piece them together – like we reconstruct huge dinosaur skeletons today – to see their aerodynamic shapes,” said Professor Zalasiewicz.

These fossils will not be alone. They will be part of a vast and complex geological archive of human activity. Alongside them, future scientists may uncover the remains of other everyday objects, from metal wires and plastic containers to microchips and industrial pollutants.

Growing impact of human waste

While wind turbine blades are one of the more dramatic examples, they are not the only evidence of human impact on the planet.

Every year, billions of discarded items accumulate in landfills and oceans. Over time, many of these objects will become buried beneath layers of sediment, preserving them for future generations to discover.

“They will be only one puzzle among the millions we leave behind in our daily lives (and we suspect they would also find the more sinister fossils left by fossil fuel burning). There’s been nothing like this emerging new fossil cornucopia in the Earth’s four and a half billion-year history,“ noted Professor Zalasiewicz.

“And right now, we should begin to understand this amazing, if often toxic, legacy that we are leaving for the planet. Knowing how our myriad discarded objects will fossilise into the far future can help us deal with the growing mountains of trash we live among today.”

Understanding how our waste fossilizes is not just an academic pursuit. It provides insight into the long-term effects of human consumption and pollution.

This knowledge could encourage more sustainable practices and better waste management strategies to reduce the environmental footprint of future generations.

Unexpected relics of modern life

The idea of human-made fossils, including turbine blades, invites some unusual questions.

What will be the strangest objects that survive millions of years into the future? Which everyday items will become the most unexpected relics of modern life?

“It’s been a real adventure to use our understanding of how fossils form in the past and now apply it to the very new world of what we call technofossils,“ Professor Sarah Gabbott noted.

“But then we were asked a really tricky question. What will the most surprising technofossil that we leave behind, millions (or billions) of years from now?

“There are so many candidates to rival wind turbines for the ‘weirdest human-made fossil of all time.’ There are, for instance, the myriad different shapes that a pair of Y-fronts can take when pressed within strata (and yes, we do explore that very particular question in the book).”

“There are the tiny, but very distinctive – and very hard-wearing – fossil smoke particles that come out of our power stations. There are the strange stories of tea-bags, and of chicken feathers, non-stick pans, the minute patterns on silicon chips, the copper wires that wrap around the globe, and much more,” explained Professor Gabbott.

From fabric pressed into rock to microscopic patterns on electronic chips, these objects will provide a unique record of human civilization. Their presence in the geological archive will serve as evidence of a world driven by innovation, industry, and material consumption.

Future research on wind turbine blades

The study of technofossils is more than just a curiosity – it forces us to reconsider our relationship with waste and long-term environmental impact. If everyday objects will outlast entire civilizations, what responsibilities do we have in managing what we leave behind?

Gabbott and Zalasiewicz’s research challenges us to think beyond the present moment. The choices we make today will shape how future generations understand our era.

By studying how human-made materials fossilize, we gain a new perspective on sustainability, history, and the consequences of our actions over deep time .

As we continue to innovate and build, it is worth remembering that the fossils of the future will not just be ancient bones and shells. Everything we discard has the potential to become a lasting mark on the planet.

This is what will tell the story of a world transformed by humanity.

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