Ancient Maya Astronomy:
The ancient Maya were keen astronomers, recording and interpreting every aspect of the sky. As they believed that the will and actions of the Gods could be read in the stars, moon and planets, they dedicated much time to doing so and many of their most important buildings were constructed with astronomy in mind. The Sun, Moon and planets (Venus in particular) were studied by the Maya. The Maya also based their calendars around astronomy.
The Maya and the Sky:
The Maya believed that the Earth was the center of all things, fixed and immovable. The stars, moons, sun and planets were gods: their movements were seen as them going between the Earth, the Underworld and other celestial destinations. These Gods were greatly involved in human affairs, and so their movements were watched closely. Many events in Maya life were planned to coincide with certain celestial moments: for example, a war might be delayed until the Gods were in place, or a ruler might ascend to the throne of a Maya city-state only when a certain planet was visible in the night sky.
One amazing astronomical achievement is the Maya could track the transit of Venus which occur approximately every 234 years.
Serpent heads at the Temple of Venus
The Maya and Venus:
The Maya were aware of the planets in the solar system and marked their movements. By far, the most important planet to the Maya was Venus, which they associated with war. Battles and wars would be arranged to coincide with the movements of Venus and captured warriors and leaders would likewise be sacrificed according to the position of Venus in the night sky. The Maya painstakingly recorded the movements of Venus and determined that its year (relative to earth, not the sun) was 584 days long, amazingly close to the 583.92 days that modern science has determined.
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