Scientists Have Discovered An Ancient Mayan Megacity In Guatemala

Archaeologists have uncovered some massive ancient urban sprawl in the depths of Guatemala's rainforests. The ruins were unearthed using a remote sensing technique LiDAR, which stands for Light Detection and Railing. The way it works is it bounces lasers off the ground, revealing contours hidden by the foliage.

The vast city envelops sites like Tikal, Holmul and Witzna, known for their pyramids and temples. It also shows that these famous heritage sites are merely the tip of the iceberg that is the lost urban network.

Found beneath the dense canopies of the Maya Biosphere Reserve are more than 60,000 man-made structures, like homes, canals, highways, tombes, eve defence fortifications, to name a few. They have all been identified in an aerial imagery collected in cooperation with a Maya cultural and natural heritage organization. The civilization is estimated to have peaked some 1,200 years ago. Data suggests of a population around 10-15 millions over an area of 800 square miles.

The infrastructure is highly advanced, with agricultural terracing and elevated trade routes to prevent flooding during the rainy season. The finds have forced experts to rethink the dimensions and complexity of the Maya empire.

This ancient nation obviously established a sturdy and creative culture they based on their relics. But recent research revealed that the scale of this long lost society is beyond what the experts have imagined.

Apparently, the Maya did more than just predict the end of the world.