Skip to main content
Access to this video is a benefit for members through

Up Next

Visiting Ancient Mayo Lands

Visiting Ancient Mayo Lands

Season 13 Episode 10
26:14
Baja Journeys: Volcanoes/Oceans

Baja Journeys: Volcanoes/Oceans

Season 13 Episode 11
26:14
Baja People: Oases/Mountains

Baja People: Oases/Mountains

Season 13 Episode 12
26:14
Baja Boojums: Bizarre Plants

Baja Boojums: Bizarre Plants

Season 13 Episode 13
26:14
The Driest Desert in the World

The Driest Desert in the World

Season 14 Episode 1401
26:14
Ancient Andean Civilizations

Ancient Andean Civilizations

Season 14 Episode 1402
26:14
People and Their Prickly Plants

People and Their Prickly Plants

Season 14 Episode 1403
26:14
The Lost Palm Weavers of Sonora

The Lost Palm Weavers of Sonora

Season 14 Episode 1404
26:14
Monumental Dunes

Monumental Dunes

Season 14 Episode 1405
26:14
Tracks in the Shifting Sand

Tracks in the Shifting Sand

Season 14 Episode 1406
26:14
Sea to Sky: Along an Incan Road

Sea to Sky: Along an Incan Road

Season 14 Episode 1407
26:14
Peru's Canyon of the Condor

Peru's Canyon of the Condor

Season 14 Episode 1408
26:14
Back to Show
The Desert Speaks

Shadows of the Ancients

Season 13 Episode 9

Archaeological evidence suggests that the ancestral Pueblo Indians (Anasazi) marked astronomical events, perhaps as guides or records. Rock art and architecture throughout the Four Corners area were carefully placed so that beams of sunlight would interact with rock images on important seasonal days such as equinoxes and solstices, marking the days with remarkably high precision.

Support Provided By
Season
Navajo Canyon Lands
Unlock with PBS Passport
26:36
The geological and spiritual history of the Glen Canyon region.
Dying Traiditions in a Mexican Pueblo
Unlock with PBS Passport
26:36
Host David Yetman takes a trip to the pueblos of the Sierra Madre.
Into the Swell: Utah's High Desert
Unlock with PBS Passport
26:36
Trek through Utah’s Little Grand Canyon.
Utah's Slick Rock Country
Unlock with PBS Passport
26:36
Host David Yetman and his brother take a geological road trip to Utah’s Colorado Plateau.
Jaguars and Vaqueros
Unlock with PBS Passport
26:36
Host David Yetman travels to track jaguar movements through Eastern Sonora Mexico.
Desert Venom
Unlock with PBS Passport
26:36
Join Herpatologists to learn more about venomous creatures of the Sonoran Desert.
Beyond the Asphalt, Part II
Unlock with PBS Passport
26:36
Host David Yetman travels to quick trips off of the interstate.
Beyond the Asphalt Part 1
Unlock with PBS Passport
26:36
Host David Yetman heads west of Tucson to visit some undiscovered places.
The Gadsden Purchase, Part 2
Unlock with PBS Passport
26:36
Travel through the Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument and Quitobaquito Springs.
The Gadsden Purchase, Part 1
26:36
Travel along the eastern border of the Gadsden Purchase.
Desert Descent: Chile’s Atacama
Unlock with PBS Passport
26:20
Travel around the Puna, the high-elevation plains of Chile’s Atacama Desert.
Tracking Trade into the Chilean Andes
Unlock with PBS Passport
26:20
We trace the Atacama Desert Trade route from the Pacific coast to the Chilean Andes.
Active loading indicator