Welcome to Easter Island

In the middle of the vast Pacific Ocean, 3,700 kilometers west of Chile and 2,600 kilometers from the nearest inhabited island, sits one of the most isolated places on Earth: Easter Island, called Rapa Nui by its people.

About 800 years ago, Polynesian navigators sailed thousands of miles across open ocean — using only the stars, ocean swells, and bird migration patterns — to reach this tiny volcanic island. There they created one of history's most remarkable civilizations and carved nearly 900 enormous stone statues called moai, some standing over 30 feet tall and weighing more than 80 tons.

How did they carve them? How did they move them? And why did they build so many? Scientists are still piecing together the answers. Let's explore.