Chaco Canyon is home to a number of remarkable ruins from many different time periods, from the Paleo Indians all the way through to comparitively recent re-settlement by the Navajo. Its most famous ruins are from the Anasazi, however. Flourishing from the mid 800s for a period of 300 years the Chacoans built many large buildings. While their culture remains enigmatic for many different reasons, some interesting astronomical properties of the buildings have been discovered. Most have features aligned with Solar or Lunar patterns, and many of the buildings are interelated as well.

Shown here is a simple map of the main sites to visit in Chaco Canyon.

Anasazi is a Navajo meaning "ancient ones" or more correctly "ancient enemies". Instead of Anasazi, the more politically correct terms "Ancestral Pueblo People" and "Ancestral Puebloans" are becoming more common.