The Valley of Mexico sits over 7,000 feet above sea level

The evolution of Mexico City, from the Aztecs to today

The sprawling modern city situated in the Valley of Mexico began a millennium ago as an island in the middle of Lake Texcoco, connected to land through a series of causeways. Learn how the Aztecs built Tenochtitlan, how the Spaniards conquered it, why the lake disappeared, and more with this visually rich history and geography of a city of 9 million people.

See a 3D reconstruction of Tenochtitlan, the Aztec capital that was home to an estimated population of 200,000 to 400,000.

Tenochtitlan, the Aztec Venice of Mesoamerica

Tenochtitlan was the capital city of the Aztecs, founded around 1325 on an island in Lake Texcoco, in what is today Mexico. It was a major political, economic, and religious center until its destruction by the Spanish in 1521. This video explores the marvels of the city, which began as an island but grew via causeways and in-filled land and culminating in a North American Venice.

The Aztec Empire explained

Tenochtitlán grew into a powerful city-state supported by innovations such as chinampa farming and its central role in the Triple Alliance. Spanish forces later exploited internal rifts to overthrow the empire, but the city’s legacy endures in modern Mexico City’s historic core.

A bird's eye view of Teotihuacan

Dubbed Teotihuacán or City of the Gods by the Mexica, this city was first inhabited in the 2nd century CE and ultimately became an important cultural landmark for the Aztec empire. Located roughly 30 miles north of Mexico City, contemporary ruins contain a 200-foot tall Pyramid of the Sun, ancient neighborhood grids, and more. Explore the city in this virtual helicopter tour.

See the path Spanish conquistadors took to conquer the Aztecs

Spanish expeditions reached central Mexico as the Aztec Empire was expanding its influence. After securing bases in the Caribbean, they advanced west into Aztec territory, triggering a cascading conflict depicted in this interactive map and timeline.

See ten of the most amazing Mayan ruins

Hidden beneath the jungles of Mexico’s Yucatán Peninsula, Maya temples, pyramids, and cities reveal the civilization’s vast construction ambitions. Decades of archaeology have uncovered these sites, which are explored in detail in this guided video tour of 10 significant ruins.

Aztec mythology informs the Day of the Dead

The ancient people believed the dead journeyed to Mictlán, the Land of the Dead. To get there, they had to travel for four years through nine underworld levels, with the final being occupied by Mictlantecuhtli, the Aztec god of death, and his wife Mictecacíhuatl.

Learn to speak the ancient Aztec language Nahuatl

Across the Aztec Empire, you'd be met with variants of Nahuatl, the indigenous language still spoken by approximately 1.5 million people today. This free, self-paced online university course teaches the Veracruz variant, beginning from the language's "piltlahcuiloltzitzin"—or alphabet—to how to conduct specific "tlamachtiliztli" or ceremonies.

Mexico’s political chaos weakened its defense against US invasion

Mexico’s post-independence instability—marked by coups, power struggles, and weak central control—left its northern frontier vulnerable. That political fragmentation shaped Mexico’s unpreparedness during the Mexican-American War and helped enable US conquest.

Inca trail interactive map

Machu Picchu gets all the attention, but it’s definitely not the only Inca ruin in the area. Some dedicated trekkers opt to see the sites through a multi-day hike down the Inca Trail, which spans 26 miles from the Sacred Valley to Machu Picchu and reaches elevations as high as 13,800 feet above sea level. This 3D tour gives a sneak-preview of the ruins along the route, and the intense topography.

How women ascended the ranks in the highstakes world of Maya politics

Two bloodlines attained near total supremacy of the Maya civilization in contemporary central America: the lords of Tikal and the Kaanul Dynasty. The Kaanul, or snake, dynasty often used marriage to expand their empire, wedding their sorcerer queens to low-ranking rulers of desired lands. Read this Archaeology Magazine article to learn more about these Maya snake queens.

Athletes in Mexico are reviving a 3,000-year-old sacred sport

A modern team is working to revive Juego de Pelota, an ancient Mesoamerican team sport played by the Maya, Aztecs, and neighboring cultures. Once central to ritual and community life, the game was outlawed by Spanish conquistadors in the 16th century.

Fly through the Valles Marineris, the largest canyon in the solar system

Stretching farther than the width of the continental US and with depths as much as four times those of the Grand Canyon, the Valles Marineris is believed to have formed when Mars’s crust tore open during intense volcanism in the planet’s past.

Mezcal is a handcrafted spirit made by Indigenous producers in Oaxaca

Unlike tequila, mezcal can be made from dozens of agave varieties and is traditionally produced by small-scale families in Oaxaca using stone pits and clay pots. The spirit's rising popularity in US bars has brought both economic opportunity to producing communities.

The world's biggest silver producers, mapped

Mexico, with its deep history of silver mining, is the dominant leader in silver production, with over 200 million ounces (as of 2023), with China and Peru in second and third place. The precious metal is increasingly important for the electronics industry, and its price is expected to keep rising. See a chart of the biggest silver miners here.

The mysterious qualities of obsidian and magnetite

Obsidian is a dark volcanic glass created when lava cools quickly and frequently contains magnetite, a key early mineral used in compasses. Large deposits were discovered and used in central Mexico by the Toltecs roughly 1,000 years ago at the ancient site of Teotihuacan. This essay explores obsidian's cultural impact and the mysterious presence of magnetite in migratory birds.

Yellowstone National Park is situated atop an active supervolcano

Yellowstone showcases geothermal phenomena, including the famous Old Faithful geyser and the vibrant Grand Prismatic Spring. The park's unique geological and ecological features make it an exceptional destination for visitors from around the globe.

Lucha libre is Mexico's high-flying spin on pro wrestling

Lucha libre, a Mexican style of professional wrestling that roughly translates to “free fighting,” shares some common characteristics with the American style, though it’s a genre in and of itself, with high-flying acrobatics, masked wrestlers and longstanding traditions.

Davos, Switzerland, is one of the highest towns in Europe

Perched high in the Swiss Alps, Davos is one of Europe’s highest towns, accessible via a limited number of routes—an isolated setting that heightens both the security and exclusivity of the annual forum.

How melting ice impacts the whole world

Melting glaciers and ice caps are far from where most people live, but their impact can be felt across the planet. Visit four places—the American West, a Himalayan valley, the northern Atlantic, and Texas—with this immersive interactive to see the various impacts of melting ice around the world.

What makes the world's biggest waves?

Some of the world’s biggest waves, routinely reaching 100 feet high, are formed near the town of Nazaré, Portugal. But what makes this area so prone to massive swells? While a number of factors are involved, the key feature is the Nazaré Canyon,...

When oceanic plates sink beneath tectonic ones, they can generate magma

At converging oceanic-continental plate boundaries, the subduction of the oceanic plate introduces seawater that reduces the melting temperature of the overlying mantle. This causes it to melt into less dense magma, which can rise to fuel more volcanic activity.

Venezuela's Lake Maracaibo is considered the lightning capital of the world

Spread across 140 to 160 nights, and as many as 10 hours per night, the region where the Catatumbo River flows into the semi-enclosed bay experiences approximately 1.6 million lightning strikes annually. The frequency of strikes may originate from warm Caribbean air interacting with cooler air from the Andes.

A breakdown of Earth's atmospheric layers, including why it can get colder or hotter with altitude

Gases in the troposphere—the atmosphere's lowest layer—cool with increasing height as they get farther from the thermal energy emitted by Earth's warm surface. In the next layer—the stratosphere—ozone is increasingly heated by the sun's ultraviolet radiation with height. Because cooler air sinks and hotter air rises, the cooler troposphere and hotter stratosphere form a natural boundary keeping Earth's weather in the lowest layer.

Chihuahua, Mexico, is the birthplace of burritos

Ciudad Juárez is home to dozens of burrito restaurants and food stalls, each with its own signature preparation. In Villa Ahumada, typical fillings include chiles rellenos and local cheese.

Waves off the coast of Nazaré, Portugal, can reach over 100 feet and are caused by the area's deep underwater canyon geography

Volcanoes 'die' when their supply of magma runs out, if they are shifted away from their underlying magma reservoir, or if they get clogged by collapsing or their magma cooling back into rock.

The boiling temperature of water decreases with increasing elevation because the molecules need less energy to overcome the lower atmospheric pressure associated with thinner air.

The Great Salt Lake's distinct dual coloration results from high-salinity organisms that only live in the northern portion and produce a purple protein.

Explore the archaeological treasures of Pompeii, the city buried under volcanic ash when Mount Vesuvius erupted in 79 CE.

In 1963, a basement renovation in Turkey revealed a passageway to a hidden, multilevel underground city that once housed as many as 20,000 people

See photos of Meteora, a mountainous site in central Greece, home to 14th-century monasteries perched atop soaring outcroppings.

'Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone,' a work by American painter Thomas Moran, inspired Congress to establish Yellowstone National Park.

El Niño, Spanish for 'the boy,' was named after Jesus Christ because the phenomenon resembled the weather changes observed around Christmastime.

Explore an interactive map built from more than 100,000 survey responses on where people find joy in their lives

Track the location of the Voyager probes, currently between 13 and 15 billion miles away from Earth.

The syncytiotrophoblast is the outer layer of the placenta and the largest human cell, spanning an area about twice that of a king-sized bedsheet.

The power and influence of the American presidency have expanded significantly over time—far beyond what the founders envisioned.

Sunflowers have long been a symbol of nuclear disarmament because they can extract large amounts of radioactive cesium from soil.

Memecoins are a type of cryptocurrency—a form of digital currency with a wide variety of uses—created around popular 'memes,' or viral internet jokes.

The name 'Silicon Valley' arose from the founding of Shockley Semiconductor Laboratory in Fairchild Semiconductor in 1956-57, founded near Stanford University in Palo Alto

In 2009, the nation was gripped by the story of a missing young boy who was believed to be floating over Colorado in a homemade balloon, until it was revealed that he was at home the whole time.

Louisiana's 'Cancer Alley' is infamous for having some of the highest industrial pollution, toxic air emissions, and cancer risks in the US.

Animal phobias are likely the most common type of phobias, followed by an extreme fear of heights.

Fast-casual restaurant Chili's is experiencing a resurgence, with its parent company recently reporting a nearly 32% increase in sales, thanks to passionate Gen Z fans on TikTok.

Power lines are dotted with large, brightly colored balls to improve the visibility of these thin wires to helicopters and small planes and help prevent potential crashes.

The Nasdaq's 'Magnificent 7' companies are responsible for roughly 40% of the Nasdaq 100 index's gains, while the remaining 93 companies account for the other 60%.

The Dracula character, now seen as the vampire archetype, was inspired by a seafood-induced nightmare its creator experienced.

The word 'jazz' evolved from 'jasm,' 19th-century American slang for 'energy'