Anatomy of a supervolcano

A heartbeat-like pulse has been discovered beating deep beneath East Africa – and it’s ripping the continent apart. The strange thumping is caused by a rhythmic surge of molten mantle rock rising and

Of the hundreds of thousands of asteroids in our solar system, it is all too feasible that one could strike Earth. If scientists discover this is likely to happen, what are our options for defending ourselves – and who will make the key decisions? Tomas Weber reports

Isn’t it amazing that astronomy – humanity’s oldest science – continues to generate such a delightful amount of new knowledge? Seeing as we’ve been studying the motion of the stars for a good long whi

PLANET EARTH

“IF WE GET KIDNAPPED BY ELVES, THAT’S PROBABLY NOT COVERED BY BBC INSURANCE". Photographer Mark chews slowly on a mouthful of wasabi-coated fish pieces and grimaces. At my sudden outburst or the food,

From dilapidated cottages to the site of a notorious nuclear disaster, what is behind the longing to seek out abandoned places, asks Katie Scott