Day Eleven

Wondering About Weather

A Maya woman carries goods on her head down the streets of Antigua.

We arrived in Antigua on Sunday, just as the market was winding down. The skies over the town's colonial buildings and cobblestone streets were clouded over and dumping rain. Pedestrians, many of whom are Maya farmers from the surrounding highlands, stopped in their tracks. They extended an upturned palm and looked skywards with frightened stares. This is the dry season: it's not supposed to rain this time of year.

For the Maya, weather is a big deal. Throughout time, subsistence farmers like the Maya relied on the predictability of weather. This, for me, explained yesterday's frightened stares. It also helps explain why the ancient Maya built their enormous temples.

	A Maya temple rises from the rainforests at Tikal.

For most of the ninth century the rains didn't come as they should have. People probably starved and mothers didn't have as many children. The population plummeted. Worse, the people probably lost confidence in their leaders.

Changing weather patterns were not only a problem for the ancient Maya. Climate change could threaten our civilization. The difference is that our actions are contributing to the modern climate change. What can we learn from our own mistakes, and from the ancient Maya?

Pedals Up!

- Dan Buettner

< previous   MayaQuest Home   next >

MayaQuest is produced by Classroom Connect as part of The Quest Channel series of online adventures.