The real mystery behind Moana: After 1,700 years, why did Polynesians suddenly sail east?

The real mystery behind Moana: After 1,700 years, why did Polynesians suddenly sail east?

The same question drives both the plot of Moana and decades of archaeological research: Why, after centuries of relative stability, did Polynesian voyagers suddenly begin settling islands thousands of kilometers away across the Pacific? The latest Moana movie is a live-action adaptation of a Disney animated movie of the same name. While the films are fictional, they draw inspiration from the rich seafaring heritage of Polynesian peoples, whose a…

The real mystery behind Moana: After 1,700 years, why did Polynesians suddenly sail east?

While ancestral Polynesians were highly adaptable and accustomed to seasonal droughts, prolonged and severe droughts during times of high population density might mean an island could no longer support its human population. Ultimately, island survival hinges on a single critical resource: rainfall. Unlocking the climate record Until recently, scientists lacked evidence from the Tonga and Samoa region of what the climate was like in this critical…