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00:00From ancient scriptures to modern science fiction, we've always been captivated by
00:04one terrifying question.
00:07How will the world end?
00:09And whether it's scary religious visions, the glamorous spectacles of Hollywood, or
00:13the stark warnings of scientists, it's something of a running theme throughout modern
00:17human history.
00:19This is Unveiled, and today we're taking a closer look at the end of the world according
00:23to science and religion.
00:26Do you need the big questions answered?
00:28Are you constantly curious?
00:30Then why not subscribe to Unveiled for more clips like this one?
00:33And ring the bell for more thought-provoking content!
00:36In truth, science does have a pretty clear roadmap for the far future of our planet,
00:42if all other doomsday scenarios are avoided.
00:45Geologically speaking, most of our knowledge comes from our study of other stars and star
00:50systems in the universe.
00:52The general life cycle of a star is well understood, and therefore so is the future of our sun.
00:59Currently, the sun is happily burning through its main phase, a stable period that lasts
01:04for billions of years, but it will eventually run out of fuel.
01:08When that happens, it'll dramatically change and begin to die.
01:12Its surface temperature will decrease and it will appear more red, transforming into
01:16what's known as a red giant star.
01:19During this cosmic transition, the sun will expand out and out, comfortably devouring
01:24Mercury and Venus as it does so.
01:27Again, its surface temperature will have decreased, but it will remain a burning and
01:31deadly prospect, far hotter than any other solar system body.
01:36Most estimates are that it will also envelop and destroy Earth.
01:40Or if the expanding sun doesn't quite make it so far as the 93 million miles that currently
01:45exist between us and it, then it will certainly scorch our planet into a lifeless crisp.
01:51Most estimates are that the sun will go red giant in about five billion years, so if we're
01:56forecasting that far into the future, then that's what science knows about the end of
02:00the world.
02:01But the next and infinitely more urgent question is, will we make it that far?
02:06The Earth today is around 4.5 billion years old, so it's got more than that again until
02:12the average estimate for red giant takes hold.
02:15That's a lot of time, especially considering that we, the modern human, are only around
02:20300,000 years old as a species, and that our modern post-agricultural revolution civilization
02:26is only about 13,000 years old as well.
02:29We only have around 5,000 years of recorded human history to look back on.
02:34Statistically, then, it's unlikely that we'll be around to see the end of the world.
02:38But that said, there are many world-ending apocalyptic scenarios, specifically relating
02:43to the end of humankind, and many of which are swirling with conspiracy.
02:49With certain religions, the end times are an ever-present theme.
02:53Christianity is the widest-spread religion in the world, and the apocalyptic events that
02:58it foresees are culturally ingrained.
03:00The Book of Revelation details the Rapture.
03:03It isn't the end of the world itself, but it is what will apparently unfold just before
03:08the end of the world.
03:09It's said that the four horsemen of the apocalypse – war, famine, plague, and death – will
03:14be released upon us.
03:16The angels of heaven will then sound seven trumpets.
03:19Each heralding a specific and catastrophic event.
03:22The final straw, and the main event, is the emergence of Satan into our myths, most likely
03:27in the form of a dragon.
03:29There swiftly follows an epic celestial battle known as Armageddon.
03:33For millions, it isn't just a story, it's a prophetic warning of what's to come.
03:38Evangelical pastors preach about the coming of the devil, interpreting current events
03:42as surefire signs of nearing doom.
03:45Wars, natural disasters, and political upheavals are cited by them as evidence of the apocalypse
03:50looming on the horizon.
03:52Such warnings are not new, however, and have been preached about for nearly 2,000 years.
03:57Early Christians, including Paul the Apostle, thought Jesus Christ would return within their
04:02lifetimes, probably during the Rapture.
04:05Suffice to say, he didn't return, and the world is still waiting for this particular
04:09apocalypse to happen.
04:11For every religious interpretation, though, there's also a big-budget blockbuster movie.
04:16Hollywood has long capitalized on its audience's fear of the end of the world, if only to sell
04:21tickets and popcorn.
04:22The Day After Tomorrow depicts a climate change disaster.
04:26In the Mad Max franchise, the action plays out across a nuclear wasteland.
04:31The key difference, though, is that climate change and nuclear war are verifiable threats.
04:36And in the Tinseltown version of events, there is apparently a chance that you, if you're
04:40the main character, could well survive even the worst that might happen.
04:44Outwitting the arrival of a mythical super-beast Satan during the Rapture is difficult to envisage.
04:50Sidestepping nuclear war and or runaway global warming is, according to the movies, a little
04:55more palatable.
04:56And yet, in real life, that's very likely not the case.
04:59It's widely believed that it was an asteroid that killed the dinosaurs, but it's not as
05:04though that one rock instantly annihilated all of them in one hit.
05:08Rather, the asteroid strike so destabled the global climate that the largest non-avian
05:13creatures were incapable of adapting to survive their new conditions.
05:18And over the next few thousand years or so, they died out.
05:21The frightening thing is that today's climate scientists believe that something similar
05:25could be happening right now.
05:27The Holocene extinction is currently ongoing, and is dubbed by some as the sixth major extinction
05:32event in Earth's history.
05:34It's said to be the result of climate change, which itself is said to have been accelerated
05:39by human activity.
05:40Obviously, there has been no instantaneous nor explosive asteroid strike for us to contend
05:45with in the last couple hundred years.
05:47But since the Industrial Revolution in particular, climate experts say that we've endured just
05:52as dramatic and turbulent a period of climatological adjustment, and for some, it really could
05:58be the end of the world.
06:00Or at least, of our kind.
06:02Nevertheless, climate change is still something that A, we're struggling to combat as a society,
06:07and B, in many cases, we're lacking the urgency to stop.
06:12Because there are no instantaneous effects, it may never grab attention nor focus minds
06:17in quite the same way as, say, an asteroid strike would.
06:21In a bizarre blurring of the boundaries between science and religion, it might even be argued
06:25that climate change deniers simply don't have enough faith in the scientists that are
06:29discovering and distributing the evidence.
06:32Irrespective of what you believe, however, there are examples all over the world of governments,
06:37groups, and individuals who really are preparing for the worst.
06:40The US government has specific plans in place in the event of a catastrophic event, broadly
06:45referred to as the Continuity of Operations Plan, or COOP.
06:49These protocols were largely devised in relation to the Cold War-era threat of nuclear attack,
06:54but they still exist today for any and all possibilities.
06:58In general, they include clear directions as to where the highest-ranking politicians
07:02should flee to, as well as detailed lines of succession.
07:06In the UK, there are the infamous Letters of Last Resort, which are handwritten by the
07:10serving Prime Minister and stored on all nuclear submarines to be opened in the event that
07:16the government is destroyed.
07:18Israel reportedly has a crisis hub built into the Judean mountains close to Jerusalem.
07:23In Norway, there's a purpose-built bunker ready for the country's royal family.
07:27In Russia, there's a long history of alleged secret command centres, although very little
07:32has ever been made public.
07:34The existence of plans in places such as these might imply that officials all over the planet
07:40are preparing for something far greater than anything they'd like to reveal, which unsurprisingly
07:46has long fueled conspiracy theories as to whether we might always be in imminent danger
07:50of the end of the world.
07:52The unfortunate truth is that, with regards to nuclear war, this isn't really hyperbole.
07:58Despite modern attempts to de-escalate conflict, there are still more than enough active nuclear
08:03warheads to spark global ruin within moments.
08:06With regard to the end times as per religion, perhaps even the best-prepared nations will
08:11ultimately get caught out.
08:13But still, climate change remains the one lingering threat that arguably no prior planning
08:19can properly escape.
08:21In almost all cases, and no matter how Hollywood can make it seem, surviving the end of the
08:27world will be no mean feat.
08:31What do you think?
08:32Is there anything we missed?
08:33Let us know in the comments, check out these other clips from Unveiled, and make sure you
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