Dark clouds gathering before rain
A police officer stands guard as Mayan priests, unseen, gather for a ceremony to mark the 15th anniversary of 1996 peace accords that ended Guatemala's civil war in Guatemala City, Thursday Dec. 29, 2011. During the 36-year civil war, which ended in 1996, about 200,000 people were killed, mostly by state forces and paramilitary groups. Press Association

Mayan civilisation that evolved around 1800 BC did not perish due to a devastating drought, a new study has found, ABC reports. Till now the assumption has been that drought had wiped out the civilisation.

Investigations by the Yucatan Center for Scientific Research in Mexico, carried out in association with the University of Southampton have revealed that only a mild drought was caused due to a drop in annual rainfall that ranged between 25 per cent and 40 per cent.

The results have been gathered after extensive analysis of long-term climate records found in undisturbed sediments from the Cariaco Basin, off northern Venezuela.

David Hodell, a geologist from the University of Florida feels that the impacting drought could have been due to the changing position of the sun, as found from the lake the team selected for their study.

It was found that during dry spells the lake bed would go parched dry unveiling the base made of gypsum. Researchers believe the drought cycle occurred periodically every 208 years in tandem with the sun's solar cycle occurring every 206 years. The researchers believe that the occurrence of drought would have taken place at the time when the sun's energy was the highest. The drought conditions were confirmed after archeological excavation revealed movement of large Mayan populations from one location to another abandoning cities due to shortage of water.

The findings hold a lot of significance as scholars and researchers reading from Mayan relics have pointed to the end of the world as ascribed by the Mayan's in their relics.

The findings come after reports that promised to uncover the truth of the extinct civilisation and their possible interactions with extra terrestrial beings. A movie documentary planned to outline Mayan civilisation is due for release this year and holds a lot of interest as it promises to disclose more about their civilisation, their living conditions and if they had contacts with extra terrestrial beings and the possible apocalypse expected to hit around the end of 2012.

Nasa refutes all claims of the world ending by the end of 2012 saying there is no science to proclaim the end of the world and has designed an FAQ to clarify doubts about the world's demise.

Whatever the possible reasons for the extinction of the Mayan civilisation, it clearly identifies the important role water resources play in the development of a community or a race and subtly warns us to be wise making optimum use of natural resources like water.

Video Courtesy: Nasa

NASA Mexico Florida