It sounds like the stuff of conspiracy theories or a disaster movie: a series of volcanic eruptions kicks off a deadly pandemic. But new research suggests that such an event may indeed have happened.

Lizzie Wade Apocalypse How catastrophe transformed our world and can forge new futures 320pp. William Collins. £20. Luke Kemp Goliath’s Curse The history and future of societal collapse 592pp. Viking.

So you thought the Universe was a place of peace and calm? Think again. Yes, the night sky looks the same as centuries ago – a trustworthy and unchanging backdrop to daily life that helps to ease your

How high up is the lowest level of ...

The Last Days of Pompeii The immersive exhibition Immerse LDN, Excel, London, until March 15 Vesuvius was always erupting in nineteenth-century London, to the delight of hundreds of thousands of eager

Strange phenomena have always drawn crowds and history is replete with miracles that have been witnessed by many people