Explore all the possible ways the world can end, astrophysically speaking.

What, in the end, will signal the end of the world? It’s the question we all ponder, but what could actually happen?

Our Earth is our tiny little haven in this chaotic universe, and it’s by sheer luck we are even here at all. The Little Book of Cosmic Catastrophes (That Could End the World) explores a full breadth of astronomical conundrums, presenting complex ideas in bitesize, easy to digest segments in three parts.

Part 1 breaks down exactly what makes Earth so special, the beginning of the universe, how everything we know could not have existed at all, the fate of the world if our sun was born a twin, and how Jupiter could have gone from our friend to our foe. Part 2 gets out heart pumping, pondering all the things that could, in theory, happen anytime. From asteroid attacks and rogue blackholes to deadly gamma ray bursts and alien invasions. We get the facts, everything from how stars die to statistically predicting the existence of aliens. Part 3 covers the inevitable, what the future of the universe will bring. From how our sun will die, to our collision course with andromeda, and even the end of time. It’s not all doom and gloom though; the final chapter outlines where humans could go next, interstellar travel, and how we might locate Earth 2.0.

Dr. Sara Webb is an astrophysicist and passionate science communicator. Her research includes chasing gravitational wave counterparts, cataloging the fastest flare stars in the galaxy, and building AI tools to help astronomers work faster.