It is commonly known that the atoms in our bodies are made out of star dust. Now scientists have found a use for what our ancestors later became: cave dust.

Archaeologists have developed a tool that could help revolutionise their ability to understand the origins and evolution of humanity, by fishing out scattered DNA buried inside previously occupied caves.

Using highly sensitive DNA extraction methods, European researchers working with scientists at the University of Wollongong have been able to identify the presence of hominins in caves even when there are no skeletal remains.

"By retrieving hominin DNA from sediments, we can detect the presence of [hominin] groups at sites where this cannot be achieved with other methods," said Svante Paabo, director of the evolutionary genetics department at the Max Planck Institute in Leipzig.

"I think this will become a standard tool in archaeology, maybe even like radiocarbon dating," he told Science magazine.

In the study, published in the journal Science, researchers looked at strands of mitochondrial DNA extracted from sediment in the same layers where fossilised remains of early hominins had been found.

They first looked in caves where the presence of Neanderthals and Denisovans were well established from fossilised remains, particularly in the Denisova and Chagyrskaya caves in Siberia.

Professor Zenobia Jacobs from the University of Wollongong said: "Where archaeologists had found Neanderthal remains, the Max Planck geneticists found Neanderthal DNA. Where they had found Denisovan remains, they found Denisovan DNA."

The researchers then applied the mitochondrial DNA extraction techniques to sediment from caves without skeletal remains, such as the Trou Al'Wesse cave in Belgium.

There they found Neanderthal DNA but no fossilised remains. Similar results elsewhere meant the scientists concluded this was evidence "indicating the repeated presence" of hominins at these sites where there were no skeletal remains.

The geneticists' work was supported by Professor Jacobs at Wollongong, who is a geochronologist – a scientist that examines the age of soil, sediment and rocks.

She said: "They can look at molecular clock estimates [of the DNA] but that's pretty imprecise. You really need to date the sediments that is associated with the DNA to get a robust chronological control."

The researchers looked at seven sites in Belgium, Croatia, France, Russia and Spain covering a time span from 14,000 to 550,000 years ago.

As well as finding hominin DNA, the team identified genetic data from extinct mammals: woolly mammoths, woolly rhinos, cave bears and cave hyenas.

Professor Paabo said: "[Our work] shows that DNA analyses of sediments are a very useful archaeological procedure, which may become routine in the future."

Professor Zenobia said the Max Planck researchers are now working with Indonesian and Wollongong teams to see if these methods can be applied to species such as Homo floresiensis, the so-called "hobbit" hominin.

"Working in indonesia is quite different to working in Europe and Siberia where it's colder than the tropics. DNA is much better preserved in colder climates," she said.

"There is a lot of potential for this technique, but there is no certainty we will be able to extract the DNA from these types of sites."

The researchers at Max Planck are optimistic. "[This method] is likely to shed light on the genetic affiliations of the occupants of large numbers of archaeological sites where no human remains are found," the paper said.