The legend of the Amazon rainforest has been around for centuries. Now, however, scientists have finally found evidence that these large-scale urban centers do exist The researchers published a new study in the journal Nature, which details the lidar imaging of Amazon. In thick areas deep in the forest, researchers found evidence of lost cities in the Amazon.
The lure of hidden cities in the Amazon has been a cornerstone of exploration for centuries. In the early years, the search for El Dorado, a city of pure gold, attracted many Spanish explorers into the wilderness.
Now, the story has taken a new turn. What was once considered a legend has now proved to be true. Thanks to lidar imaging, a team of scientists can see through the thick canopy of the Amazon. Under all these trees, they found the remains of a huge city center.
But this is certainly not any lost city in the Amazon. The city discovered by scientists belongs to kassalabi culture with complex social structure. According to Smithsonian magazine, this culture existed between 500 and 1400 ad, and they lived in the city center with "memorial platforms and pyramid buildings".
Scientists say that although the Amazon is so desolate, it may be an urbanized area with a large population. They believe that the images show evidence of elevated access roads connecting different settlements. In addition, these settlements are believed to extend for miles throughout the Amazon region.
But the certification of lost cities in the Amazon region is not the end of the story. Because light based remote sensing technology (LIDAR) has been proved to be very effective, it allows us to search more Amazon areas without actually entering them. Of course, confirming these findings still requires us to actually explore Amazon.
However, since we already know the location of these civilizations, it will be easier to navigate and explore them. In the final analysis, this discovery is an extension of a story that has developed for centuries. And as this chapter begins, perhaps we will be able to explore the Amazon rainforest in more detail.
In fact, one of the authors of the discovery said he expected to find more lost cities in the Amazon in the next 10 to 20 years. And some cities will be larger than those outlined in the latest paper.