Archaeologists use the power of satellites more and more often to explore the past. Recently, with the help of a lidar installed on orbiters, they were able to identify previously unknown ruins of the Mayan civilization.
Satellites and archaeology
Orbiters are being used more often to solve problems that are aimed not only at the present and the future, but also at the past. Recently, Brett Houk, a professor of archaeology at Texas Technological University, explained how this happens at a NASA-led conference on space archaeology.
According to him, thanks to the use of satellites, archaeologists have found more previously unknown monuments of extinct civilizations in the last 10 years than in the previous 150. And all thanks to the fact that instead of wandering through the jungle, they can survey vast areas from above.
His own research focused on finding new ruins of the Mayan civilization. It existed on the Yucatan Peninsula and built majestic structures, but was eventually destroyed. Its cities are now UNESCO cultural heritage sites. However, many more unknown buildings are still hidden beneath the tropical vegetation.
Lidar found the hidden buildings
This is not the first time satellites have been used to find lost Mayan buildings. This time, as in several previous ones, it wasn’t simple vehicles taking pictures, but satellites equipped with a lidar. This device is a laser radar. It irradiates the surface of the ground with a beam and forms a picture behind its reflection.
Through the use of a lidar, it becomes possible to see what hides beneath the trees. Which satellites and under which program they were used this time are unknown. The authors are preparing their papers with the results of their findings for publication, so this information is classified.
However, according to Houk, it is known that the investigated area was 650 km2. The researchers found 28 objects there. They can tell a lot of interesting things about the Mayan civilization. After all, it disappeared not only because of the invasion of Europeans, but also because of climate change, and they resisted it for a long time.
Archaeologists note the need to use satellites with lidars again and again over the same areas, because the more images, the higher the probability that some object will be noticed.
However, it is still necessary to involve many skilled workers to process these images. Of course, archaeologists are aware of the existence of artificial intelligence, but they say that access to really high quality systems is expensive and limited, and the remaining artificial intelligences can’t compare to living humans.
According to www.space.com
