Antarctic Journey 5: Impressions of Peru, Moray Terraces

Sacred Valley was the granary of the Inca Empire, where there are various styles of Inca terraces. The town of Moray is located at an altitude of 3600 meters, producing tuber crops such as potatoes and a variety of hybrid crops. The circular terraces that come into view are a wonderful sight. Among the vast hills, there are many sunken terraces that resemble circular stepped theaters, with depths ranging from 100 to 160 meters. The circular terraces with more than ten layers of terraces connected in circles and evenly arranged look like the painting masterpiece of aliens. Moray is one of the many mysterious towns in Peru. For hundreds of years, it has been hidden in the Sacred Valley of the Plateau and unknown until 1932. It was discovered in an aerial survey sponsored by the National Geographic Society. Photographer Shippe Johnson took the first aerial photograph of the spectacular and shocking terrace system here, which was discovered 21 years later than Machu Picchu. This is the 'agricultural experimental base' of the ancient Incas. They carried out species hybridization and improvement experiments on foreign species (such as coca) here, and cultivated crops that can adapt to different climates, such as potatoes, quinoa and corn, etc. They also cultivated disaster-resistant varieties that can achieve good harvests even in disaster climates. The trick is to cleverly use the unique pebbles in the bed of the Urubamba River with different specific heat capacities, lay different thicknesses at the bottom of the terraces, and design and build terraces that adapt to different climates according to the climate differences at different heights every 300 meters. According to Peruvian authorities, these circular terraces have 20 different microclimates and ecological environments; and due to the natural sinkholes formed by crustal movements and the construction of terraces into a circular shape, they have good underground drainage functions. The ancient Incas used the difference in specific heat capacity of special stones to regulate the temperature of different terraces, and maintained different humidity by controlling the irrigation system, thereby creating different microclimates for terraces at different heights.