Editing Nazca lines (section)

===Alternative speculations===
[[file:NEO nazca lines big.jpg|right|thumb|Satellite picture of an area containing lines: north is to the right (coordinates: {{coord|14.7|S|75.|W}})]]<!-- note image is rotated approx. 90° cw, with north at right -->
Other theories were that the geometric lines could indicate water flow or irrigation schemes, or be a part of rituals to "summon" water. The spiders, birds, and plants may be fertility symbols. It also has been theorized that the lines could act as an [[astronomical calendar]].<ref>{{cite book |last=Brown |first=Cynthia Stokes |title=Big History |publisher=The New Press |location=New York |date=2007 |page=[https://archive.org/details/bighistoryfrombi00brow/page/167 167] |isbn=978-1-59558-196-9 |url=https://archive.org/details/bighistoryfrombi00brow/page/167}}</ref>

Phyllis Pitluga, senior astronomer at the [[Adler Planetarium]] and a protégé of Reiche, performed computer-aided studies of star alignments. She asserted the giant spider figure is an [[Anamorphosis|anamorphic]] diagram of the [[Orion (constellation)|constellation Orion]]. She further suggested that three of the straight lines leading to the figure were used to track the changing [[declinations]] of the three stars of [[Orion's Belt]]. In a critique of her analysis, Dr. Anthony F. Aveni noted she did not account for the other 12 lines of the figure.{{fact|date=July 2021}}

He commented generally on her conclusions, saying:
<blockquote>I really had trouble finding good evidence to back up what she contended. Pitluga never laid out the criteria for selecting the lines she chose to measure, nor did she pay much attention to the archaeological data Clarkson and Silverman had unearthed. Her case did little justice to other information about the coastal cultures, save applying, with subtle contortions, Urton's representations of constellations from the highlands. As historian [[Jacquetta Hawkes]] might ask: was she getting the pampa she desired?<ref>Aveni, Anthony F. (2006). ''Between the Lines: The Mystery of the Giant Ground Drawings of Ancient Nasca, Peru ''. Austin, Texas: University of Texas Press.  {{ISBN|0-292-70496-8}} p. 205 [https://archive.org/details/betweenlinesmyst00aven/page/204 <!-- quote=pitluga nazca lines. -->]</ref></blockquote>