What if we weren’t the dominant species on this planet? What if we had to compete with every other species on Earth? We are outnumbered. We are surrounded. And our...
Donald Trump called the Pope “weak on crime” and “terrible for foreign policy.” The Pope’s response? He has “no fear of the White House...
Ah. The Sun. So bright. So hot. Time to jump into your super heat-resistant spaceship and get so close you could touch it. If you dare. How would you get to the Sun’s...
At first thought, volcanoes might seem like the perfect natural disposal system. They are incredibly hot, appear to swallow anything in their path, and seem limitless in...
Imagine the Sun releasing a burst of energy so powerful it could knock out power grids, stop airplanes mid flight, and push our world back into the dark ages. This is...
We visit a lot of planets here on WHAT IF, but K2-141b is the most extreme one yet. Are you ready to jump on board this one-way space shuttle? If you’d rather stay...
This is the most powerful object in the Universe. The biggest spinning magnet to ever exist. It’s the cosmic equivalent of a great white shark. But it...
Wouldn’t it be great to have a truly jaw-dropping view? Like windows looking directly into space? Well, it’s time to build your very own cosmic skyscraper. What would it...
You’d better mind your waste because it’s not piling up in landfills anymore. Today, we’re going to dump it all straight into the oceans. How much trash would that...
A black hole is on a collision course with our Sun. And there’s nothing left for you to do except sit back and watch the destruction of our entire Solar System. How...
Betelgeuse, Betelgeuse, Betelgeuse. Saying its name three times won’t have the same effect as a certain bio-exorcist, but it’s still a sight to behold. At about 950...
Prehistoric Australia was not the sunny, laid back continent we know today. Between 126,000 and 12,000 years ago, during the late Pleistocene era, humans shared the land...
With the world’s population growing every year, we need to find ways to produce more food. So, if we could bring dinosaurs back from the dead, would you eat them...
Neanderthal DNA is 99.7% identical to our own, and researchers claim that some humans might be carrying as much as 2% of the Neanderthal genome. Making things even...
Technically speaking, this marine reptile wasn’t a dinosaur, although it sure swam the Earth alongside many of them. Styxosaurus lived 70 to 85 million years ago, in the...
How would you feel if this never ended? Despite all of the masks, tests, and vaccinations, there is no guarantee that COVID-19 will ever disappear. But stick with me on...
Imagine landing on a planet where the surface looks frozen but burns hotter than your oven. Welcome to Gliese 436b, one of the strangest known planets in the universe...
627 million km (390 million mi) from Earth, underneath the cold seas of Europa, a horrifying, and vastly intelligent creature lurks. Can our human minds even comprehend...
All good things must come to an end. Sadly, Homo sapiens’ time on Earth is no exception. And someone would surely take our place as the dominant species. But who? Or...
If Earth had rings like Saturn our sunsets would be an incredible spectacle. It isn't farfetched as the Earth did have rings a very long time ago, the result of a...
