My wife and I a couple of decades ago took a camping road trip down the middle of New Mexico, starting near the top of the state. One of our first stops was to visit the Acoma community, which is a pueblo built on top of a mesa; very few people still live up there. The various "apartments" are passed down matrilineally, which was an interesting thing to learn.
It was August, and very hot outside - well over 100F. Inside one of the apartments on the tour, someone was selling snowcones - a welcome relief. We went inside (had to duck under the doorway, as it was only 4-5 feet tall) and it was easily 20-30 cooler than the outside. The only thing we could figure was that being on top of the mesa, plus night temperatures, and the thick adobe construction, all acted as a thermal-mass barrier system or something. It was really amazing to experience. I honestly wish that kind of construction was more common here in the southwest.
It was August, and very hot outside - well over 100F. Inside one of the apartments on the tour, someone was selling snowcones - a welcome relief. We went inside (had to duck under the doorway, as it was only 4-5 feet tall) and it was easily 20-30 cooler than the outside. The only thing we could figure was that being on top of the mesa, plus night temperatures, and the thick adobe construction, all acted as a thermal-mass barrier system or something. It was really amazing to experience. I honestly wish that kind of construction was more common here in the southwest.