FYI: There are only TWO man-made objects on earth visible from space: the California Aqueduct and the Great Wall of China, astronauts reported years ago.
The Second Great Wall, surely not visible from space or that would have been reported, was constructed in Peru by the ancient Chimus, a numerous, civilized people apparently completely wiped out by the Incas. In the January, 1933, issue of National Geographic Magazine, Robert Shippee tells of the Chimus' Great Wall and other things, Air Adventures in Peru: Cruising Among Andean Peaks, Pilots and Cameramen Discover Wondrous Works of an Ancient People. No one in the world knew about the existence of this Great Wall until the airplane pilots noticed it several years before this article was written. They were very excited about the 'find.' I was very excited to learn of the Chimus, adversaries of the Incas.
The first photo of this long article shows the wall beginning a few miles from the Pacific Ocean coast then snaking across mountains for many miles. "The Great Wall of Peru, like that of China, may have repelled invasion. Across the Santa River delta and up into the hills it twists, climbing sharp ridges and swooping into valleys. The author and his companions followed it for 40 miles by airplane, yet, they believe, explored only a small portion of its length. . . At intervals along its sides are sturdy forts," (photo caption, p. 80). The fortifications were mostly rectangular in shape; at least one was circular. They were not connected directly to the wall but they were above it in the mountains, not visible from the valleys.
The Chimus' civilization was well-developed; their capital city, Chan Chan, once held 250,000 inhabitants. Archeology reveals an extensive system for agricultural irrigation once existed. The Great Wall protected the Chimus from the invading Incas until approximately 1470 when the Incas found a route in the valleys between the 25,000-foot tall mountains. The Incas themselves were conquered by the Spanish fifty years later.
We cannot imagine all the gold removed from the mountains by both the Chimus and the Incas. "From Chan Chan alone more than four million dollars' worth of gold and silver ornaments were removed by the Spaniards," (p. 88). It is tragic that so much of archeological evidence has been plundered in most of the sites throughout the world.
The author and the other members of his five-man team planned to take their two planes, the Washington and the Lima, and visit Huancayo, a town in the mountainous interior of Peru. First, they rode a train there, to scout out the 'airfield' capabilities. At that time, the train traveled at the highest point in the world. Huancayo is at a high elevation of nearly 12,000 feet above sea level. Their return was delayed because "Peru was in revolution and we were delayed for several weeks," (p. 92). I've noticed in these National Geographic Magazine articles that this happened in many different parts of the world - revolution meant the travelers just had to wait "several weeks!" In 2014, we wouldn't want to be in the same part of the world as a revolution in progress!
The team wanted to explore and photograph two volcanoes, Ubinas and the Misti. After adventures in the 22,000 feet thin atmosphere, both planes separately returned to the airfield. The Washington crew wondered why the Lima crew had not appeared. After photos were developed, it was proven that both planes were there and the Washington had indeed, photographed the Lima. They concluded that the oxygen-deprived air had played tricks on their vision.
The two planes flew everywhere fairly close together in case trouble forced one to land, the other could help. On their way to Cusco, the planes lost sight of each other. The Washington continued on to Cusco but no sign was seen of the Lima. Let's leave our story there and return tomorrow!
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