Screenshot from a 3D animation of the Cotoca site.
Ecologically critical to our Earth, it also is a gem of human history.
These sites were sophisticated, with water systems and pyramid-like structures.
Screenshot from a 3D animation of the Cotoca site. (Photo:H. Prumers/Dai)
Using the technology aboard helicopters, the team covered an area of 1,737 square miles.
Within these bounds they documented 24 smaller sites, 11 of which were previously unknown.
They also scanned Cotoca and Landivar, two larger sites within the region.
Lidar image of the large settlement site Cotoca, with elevation indicated. (Photo:Figure 2/Prumers)
These larger sites had platform mounds and cone-shaped pyramids measuring up to 72 feet tall.
The settlements were built by the Casarabe culture and date from 500 to 1400 CE.
The Casarabe builders crafted defensive moats, canals to carry water, and earthen buildings on a large scale.
Lidar coverage is marked by the grey areas. Black triangles represent settlement sites of the Casarabe culture that have platform mound architecture. (Photo:Figure 1/Prumers)
Some seem to bealigned with the stars.
Preserving such history has also become an important part of the race to halt the deforestation of the Amazon.
Laser technology has penetrated the dense vegetation of the Bolivian Amazon Rainforest to discover 11 new settlements.
Lidar image of the large settlement site Cotoca, with elevation indicated.
Lidar coverage is marked by the grey areas.
Black triangles represent settlement sites of the Casarabe culture that have platform mound architecture.
