| [00:01.20] |
The Lapita's first voyages into the unknown must have appeared suicidal |
| [00:07.28] |
Although many were lost at sea, |
| [00:09.79] |
some Lapita did reach new islands, |
| [00:13.0] |
thanks to their extraordinary navigation skills |
| [00:16.53] |
This man can interpret the direction of land by reading wave and swell patterns |
| [00:23.01] |
Like his ancestors, |
| [00:24.89] |
he carries in his head a complex wind map detailing the various seasonal winds |
| [00:28.87] |
that serve as a compass |
| [00:31.21] |
And at night, he can navigate by the stars |
| [00:34.22] |
In craft like these, |
| [00:36.0] |
the Lapita reached the islands of Tonga,2,000 miles east of New Guinea, |
| [00:42.10] |
in the heart of the South Pacific |
| [00:44.22] |
Further east, |
| [00:45.37] |
the odds of a castaway making land drop steeply as the islands become fewer and even more isolated |