The landing marker theory never really died, it just got embarrassed into the corner at parties. Von Daniken essentially poisoned the well by overselling it with zero methodology, so now anyone who takes it seriously gets lumped in with flat earthers and that lot.
But here's what bugs me. The scale of some of those geoglyphs only makes sense from altitude. The Nazca people weren't stupid, they clearly understood the geometry, so why design something that's functionally invisible from ground level? "It was for the gods to see" is the accepted answer and fair enough, but that's not actually more scientific than the alternative, it just sounds less embarrassing at conferences.
I'm not saying ancient astronauts. I'm saying we've probably overcorrected. The truth is likely weirder and more mundane simultaneously, like most things in this field.
Anyone here looked at the ley line correlations with the line orientations? There's some work connecting Nazca to broader South American sacred geography that doesn't get nearly enough attention.