Belize's Blue Hole, known by scuba divers and tourists as a large underwater cave, has recently provided scientists with clues concerning the reasons why the Mayan civilization declined.

According to The Guardian, the cave is 400 feet deep in a barrier reef. Its minerals as well as those found on its nearby lagoon support the theory that drought and climate conditions pushed the Mayans from a regional power to a smattering of rival survivors and finally a virtually lost civilization.

To be more precise, scientists from Rice University and Louisiana State University drilled into the core of the ancient sinkhole in order to locate minerals and sediment from the time of Mayan decline, which was between 800 and 1000 AD.

CNN reports that they found that the ratio of titanium to aluminum changed in the ninth and 10th centuries, a period when the Mayan civilization in the Yucatan Peninsula went into decline. This means there was heavier rainfall, which allowed for runoff from the area's volcanic rock to be present.

However, between 800 and 1000 AD, there was a much smaller ratio of the two elements. This led scientists to believe that there was a long period of draught that may have led to famines and unrest.

By 900 AD, all Mayan cities were abandoned. Scientists have been puzzled for decades as to why the Mayans would leave their great cities, and have suggested war, climate, disease and politics as possible causes. The information made available by this recent study puts forward the idea that a series of droughts may have tipped the scales, and could have killed crops as well as turned rival groups against each other in the search for resources.

In actuality, the drought theory isn't a new one. However, environmental archaeologist Douglas Kennett puts it simply: "The main finding was that a prolonged drought contributed to the collapse of Classic Mayan civilization."