The name "Chetro Ketl" was translated by William Henry Jackson (an early photographer of the Canyon) as "Rain Pueblo" but did not record his sources. No other explanation of the name has been discovered.

It would have boasted 560 rooms when intact. Its back wall once supported 5 stories of rooms and is aligned along the Lunar Minor Standstill within 1 degree. The lines drawn from Chetro Ketl to both Kin Bineola and Pueblo Pintado are aligned along this axis. Pueblo Pintado's back wall is also on this axis. Both Kin Bineola and Pueblo Pintada are not visible from this location.