Researchers using LiDAR technology have identified an immense 8th-century Maya solar observatory complex hidden under the dense canopy of the El Zotz region in Guatemala. The structure, a sprawling tiered platform, is aligned with the rising sun of the summer solstice and the setting sun of the winter solstice with a margin of error of less than one degree.
The observatory, which archaeologists have dubbed The Eye of the Sun, served as a ritual and scientific center where Maya astronomer-priests tracked celestial cycles to manage the agricultural calendar. The find confirms the existence of a high-altitude 'astronomy corridor' connecting major Maya city-states through shared cosmological infrastructure.