The Inca Feedback Loop: How Climate Collapse Doomed Machu Picchu — Fexingo History

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The Inca Feedback Loop: How Climate Collapse Doomed Machu Picchu — Fexingo History

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In this episode, Lucas and Luna explore a groundbreaking theory that ties Machu Picchu's construction and abandonment to climate change. They discuss the Medieval Warm Period's role in enabling Inca expansion under Pachacuti, the construction of high-altitude terraces and water channels, and the devastating impact of the Little Ice Age. Lucas explains how prolonged droughts and cooling temperatures after 1450 CE strained the Inca's ability to feed their empire, leading to food riots, social unrest, and the eventual vulnerability to Spanish conquest. The conversation covers the 2012 study by paleoclimatologist Lonnie Thompson, ice core data from the Quelccaya ice cap, and the specific evidence of increased drought frequency in the Urubamba Valley. Lucas also connects this environmental stress to the Inca civil war between Huáscar and Atahualpa, suggesting that resource scarcity may have fueled the conflict. The episode ends with a reflection on how empires are often at the mercy of forces beyond their control.

#MachuPicchu #IncaEmpire #ClimateChange #LittleIceAge #MedievalWarmPeriod #Pachacuti #QuelccayaIceCap #LonnieThompson #UrubambaValley #Paleoclimatology #Drought #IncaTerraces #CivilWar #Huascar #Atahualpa #Tawantinsuyu #History #FexingoHistory #HiramBingham #Andes

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