Culture

The Mountain West News Bureau

A collaboration of public media stations that serve the Western states of Colorado, Idaho, Nevada, New Mexico, Utah, and Wyoming.

What we can learn from Mayan astronomy

Mountain West News Bureau | By Daniel Spaulding

Published April 6, 2026 at 1:03 PM MDT

Tz'iknal (also known as the Caracol or the Observatory) at Chich'en Itza

Gerardo Aldana is a professor at University of California, Santa Barbara. Our Living Lands producer Daniel Spaulding spoke to Gerardo Aldana, a professor at University of California, about Mayan astronomy, Mesoamerican culture, and the importance of Indigenous knowledge.

Gerardo Aldana is a professor at University of California, Santa Barbara. Our Living Lands producer Daniel Spaulding spoke to Aldana about Mayan astronomy, Mesoamerican culture, and the importance of Indigenous knowledge.

"If we think of Indigenous cultures and their approaches, especially Mesoamerican cultures and their approaches to astronomy, it wasn't to transform and control nature," Aldana said. "It was to find ways to open up dialogues with nature so that now your engagement with your environment can be a productive and a healthy one."