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I love this channel. I listen to it every night at bedtime. It puts me right out - and I do not mean that as an insult. I love these shows and they relax me. Each night I pick up where I left off.

I am a descendant of the Maidu and Nisenan, native tribes. Our territory would be entirely arbitrary if it weren't for the fact that it was mentioned in this very documentary! My people are from the CA valley and Sierra Foothills/Gold country. Among our oral history is a story of what is loosely translated as: "eternal night and cold pain". It happened thousands of years ago... where the sun was afraid to be seen and turned the rivers to ice. We were a migratory tribe and traveled up and down the foothills. My people stayed in the valley that year. Lost hundreds of people in the winter that stayed too long. I've always been fascinated with that story as a child and now I find out that modern science has shed some more light on it! Proud to say that I have been born and raised here and this documentary gave me a huge connection to my native land.

Incredible to think how lucky we all are that our ancestors survived this when so many did not. I would really like to know what factors contributed to who survived and who did not.

It's a huge event where the sun disappears. I wanted to cross-reference with documents in Ancient Korea in the year 536 AD. They also stated that there was a huge volcano. It lasted until year 550 AD. What they stated the last four years of this event, was horrific.

Can you imagine an event like this happening today? The death would be unlike anything ever written. So many people are out of touch with the basic principles of survival.

Fascinating, thanks to all the hard work from everyone to helped make this deduction possible!

It’s amazing to think of how the people coped and survived. Fascinating video. Thank you!

I love how most documentaries always forget to mention that they rarely impact the ground.The old air burst is just as destructive.

If this bit of history interests you, I recommend reading the Fifth Season by NK Jemisin. It's a scifi afro-futurism novel that deals with similar themes, so much so that I think the author was inspired by this part of history

Krakatoa is not a mistery. It's a volcano that erupts violently every 200 years or so. Its explosion in 536 caused 2 years of blocking sun rays. That caused crops to fail worldwide, famine and black plague. Krakatoa still active today and will explode again like it always does.

We now know that there was a volcanic one-two punch, in the form of separate eruptions in 535 and again in 540. Krakatoa (yes, THAT Krakatoa) in Indonesia and Lake Ilopango in El Salvador both experienced massive, caldera forming VEI7 eruptions around that time. Each eruption, by itself, was large enough to alter the global climate.

Excellent investigative journalism. I always enjoy reading, or hearing, about how different scientific disciplines work together to explain phenomena.

Fascinating. I'm a horticulturist and amateur historian so this doco explains a lot about the world. Thanks.

Fascinating that science can tell of world wide occurrences with such accuracy. Love these types of programs. Really peeks your interest.

There were two mega eruptions. The first occurred in 536AD, likely a VEI6. Radiocarbon dating has shown the eruption had a heavier impact in Europe, the northern hemisphere, and the arctic. This means the eruption happened somewhere very north. The exact volcano is still a mystery. I believe it was Katla in Iceland but there is currently not enough data to prove which volcano was responsible. The second eruption happened in 540AD at Krakatoa, Indonesia. This was a VEI7 eruption. These two events triggered the Dark Ages. The Ilopango VEI6 eruption in El Salvador happened in 431AD, unrelating to our story but having a direct impact on the mesoamerican cultures. This would have led to famine and Teotihuacan being abandoned. Another chart mentions a Kamchatka VEI6 eruption around 577 but I have not found any data to support this

Amazing how nature records its history

The only question I have now is: what was it like the day the sun came back? How crazy must that have been... Did it just come back all of a sudden or was it slowly recovered over a few days or weeks or what? It's a really interesting topic I didn't know I was interested in til now

This was unbelievably fascinating material, -and, frightening considering our current state, almost exactly 1500 years later. Could all the latest evidence suggest a more narrow cyclical pattern? Not unlike, the tree rings.

Read David Keyes book 15 to 20 yrs ago. Catastrophe just enthralled me. His deductive reasoning and assumption at the time seemed so easy to comprehend. The cultures he mentioned then rekindled my interests in history. Constantinople, China (It is said that the chinese also recorded the eruption of Taupo in New Zealand approx zero ad to 130 yrs ad. Karakatoa apparently also has a polynesian connection. One interpretation of Karakatoa is 'Warriors or guadians of of the Karaka grove'. A tree some say that was transported by maori to N.Z Aotearoa for sustainance.Some debate whether it is actually native to N.Z. Taupo-nui-atea refers to the massive lake that took the place of the mountain that previously existed beforehand as 'The great cloak of a tia' I think possibly atea = sky projectile comet/meteor. The area was encloaked by hundreds of square kilometres of pumice. Charred remains of decimated native forests ash ,stumps existed until well after polynesian discovery circa 950 to 1350ad.

The year 1816 is also known as the year without a summer. It was dreadfully cold. This was apparently due to a volcano eruption in what is now Indonesia.

I first read of Krakatoa in 1975, when I was 10 years old. Finding accounts and documentation at the time, partly due to my age & limited resources, was not anywhere as easy as it is today. Most academic adults I knew then had never ever heard of it, and those who had were historians of Eastern Culture. I did not know many, if any, geologists or vulcanologists myself. The 1883 Krakatoa eruption caused red skies across the globe for several years. Wasn't bad enough to wreck civilization globally, but still had undeniable global effects. I only learned later that was really the beginning of modern vulcanology. The rate at which Krakatoa has rebuilt itself since 1883 is astounding, to say the least! Watching the daily developments of Mt. St. Helen's as a 15 year old in 1980 was even more fascinating, if not frightening, as well!

The sound of Krakatoa being a herd in China is definitely within the realm of possibility, as the eruption of Hunga-Tonga was heard all the way in Alaska, nearly twice the distance sound traveled in the 1883 eruption.

Great presentation of this intriguing incident and the needed detective work to make it happen. I was figuring Volcano once I heard about the Sulfur. Before that I thought probably not a meteor or asteroid strike, but maybe passing through a comet's gas cloud...

A decade!! Imagine being a kid born into that and dying young thinking that’s just what the sky looked like….

I'm very interested in how this near catastrophe influenced the entire world history of man's endevours.

When I was in school I had a teacher that was interested in this as well and we used to discuss this topic and did a lot of work on it I remember passing that year with straight A's in science because I was interested. The next year I had a monotone depressing science teacher and that's where we lost a lot of good students from science. God bless you good teachers stay strong we need you! For those who forget the past are doomed to repeat it!!! I don't remember who first quoted that but they are a lot more intelligent than I and it still makes sense

There was a recent archaeological discovery in Denmark of a golden hoard Buried where a longhouse once stood and a rune stone that pleaded to the Gods to “take this offering of gold to bring back the sun” I’m paraphrasing a bit but the find was carbon dated to this period.

This is great to fall asleep to. It distracts me from all my awful thoughts at night, so I may rest. Thank you.

Awesome work getting that data together. Crazy to think that you gathered 7500 yrs data and it is maybe a speck of mist compared to the earths history

Wow, the technology they were using in the lab is ancient. That stuff hasn't been cutting edge for at least twenty years. If anybody wanted to make a better tool for those people, it would have to be tailored to their expectations, because software engineering has advanced so much since they learned how to use computers that even the symbols/icons they are used to interacting with are no longer in use.

This was one of the best videos I've ever watched on TRshow.. So much time is wasted on superfluous videos, when one could learn so much from history.. Subscribed 👌

Thank you Chronicle, great work, very informative & entertaining

It’s crazy to think that Krakatoa caused the Mongol empire by contributing to a massive die-off of cattle in Mongolia.

Fascinating. Love this stuff! Thank you and looking forward too much more!

Very interesting that it is possible to pinpoint historical events like this.

Great video thanks! I know they don't need this for evidence, but I did wonder if there might not be references to this in the myriad monastic records in Europe?

Interestingly, the Gupta empire, which started in the early 4th century CE and is credited with bringing about the Golden Age of Indian history, ended precisely during this particular time period.

If Baille is wright about Lugh, perhaps this event occured in late July or early August of that year, as Lughnasadh is Aug 1 (although sometimes celebrated a few days prior). I first heard about this event from a children's book based on an old Mayan story of a hero who had to go and find the sun hiding under a rock.

I was in Northern Wisconsin in mid Summer 1992, & remember having to wear a heavy jacket in the evenings. It was bizarre. I was later told it was a consequence of the 1991 eruption of Mt. Penatubo in the Philippines.

I read Mr Keys’ book years ago. Fascinating. Was recommended to me in a different book by the great Simon Winchester.

The volcano was a giant mountain range that connected mount Lassen to mount shasta in Northern California. The entire center blew out and left behind two separate mountains. There’s scattered volcanic rock all over Northern California from the blast. Look at Roseville and Rocklin in placer county.

Chris Maser wrote a book 30 years ago named "Forest Primeval" its about old growth forests of the Northwest USA, then matching the trees ages with Human Historical events..Great read if u are into the History and Ecology of the last 1000-1500 years or so..✌️

As soon as they said “yellow dust you can scoop up with your hands.” I thought the yellow must be sulphur which means a volcano… and I realized how freaking terrifying they are. 🌋 I don’t think I could emotionally handle an entirely dark winter let alone a whole 18 months!!!

I would have loved to hear from the politic, social and economic turmoils caused by this event. As it had been done with the plague 1662 in London.. fascinating stuff. But this is another story and would mean a huge international historical research.. with fundings ..

Fabulous programming!! I love every episode! Bravo!!

The mass panic must have been so palpable and frightening when this event occurred. Can’t imagine how we would react to it now a days.

My guess was a volcano. When there is no summer that is a sign of volcanic activity. The 1815 volcano in Indonesia took about 8 months to be fully felt globally. The summer of 1816 had crop failures and no summer. Farmers experienced snow storms in the American mid west in June and July.

What if the asteroid/comet hit / airbursted over/on the Sahara desert...?could the sand dunes hide a crater or can the airburst shockwave eject enough sand into the atmosphere to cause the perception of a dimming sun?

This is a rebroadcast of a much older Secrets of the Dead episode. Since then experts have suggested that Ilopango in El Salvador may be a better match for the volcano.[This is spelled ILOPANGO.] The dates match much better. But, it could also be both places. The ice cores have 2 sulfur layers, not one.

I enjoyed watching this to the fullest and it answered one of my fictional questions: Why does (George R.R Martins) Westeros have long winters? I first sought answers to the planets orbit around their star and solar activity but could not find an answer on their irregular summer/winter seasons The world where GoT plays out, may have a undiscovered highly active volcanic continent which causes massive eruptions and therefore long winters and 'the long night that lasted 6 generations' in their history. Since Arya Stark set sail to the West of Westeros, se may discover it or never return from it

Interesting documentary. I have been learning about the 11-13,000 year ago events, Younger Dryas event. Climate is not "normal" and with more science like this, catastrophic events including "nova" with our sun appear to be the culprit.

Is it possible that the chaos caused by the massive eruption would be worse in the immediate area of the eruption and lessen in concentric rings in the area farthest away from the eruption? Could the initial eruption set off a domino series of volcanic eruptions in other parts of the world creating a cumulative effect of the dust? Could the reason we do not see evidence of such eruptions is that the eruption consumed some of the volcanoes? Could enough snow and ice be generated in the last 1500 years to cover up craters and other evidence in the polar regions? If tsunamis occurred in largely uninhabited area or areas that were completely wiped out, there would be few references to such an occurrence. If changes in the coastline occurred, wouldn't the evidence be on the ocean floor? Is there any coastal population centers that exist now but did not exist before 532? What about evidence in human DNA? A sufficiently large eruption could wipe out an entire civilization with the result that the DNA that cannot be identified in the modern people is the only remnant of the lost civilization? Could a massive eruption explain why places such the Australia and the Galápagos Island have flora and fauna that is not seen anywhere else? Some writers suggest that Polynesian people reached the coast of South America to intermingle with the indigenous population? Is it possible that people fleeing the devastation of a massive eruption ended up in South America?

In 86 AD lake Taupo experienced a volcanic eruption that threw out massive rocks and trees were blown over and many were covered in water I have seen both. The atmosphere was filled with ash that was spread on to may parts of New Zealand . The date of the sound of the eruption was heard & recorded in China at that time. It would have impacted the weather in NZ but elsewhere I do not know

The year April 1815 -- Mt. Tamboro exploded and caused a year without summer (in 1816) around the world -- Two months earlier, Feb, Napoleon escaped Elba and returned to France with an Army.

I love how this same story keeps showing up all over the place now as if to make everyone feel better about the present

I note on Wikipedia that other scientists have suggested a major eruption of the El Salvador volcano Ilopango could also be the culprit behind the AD536 climate catastrophe, but I have not seen anyone point out that Ilopango and Krakatoa are roughly antipodal, and that it is well known that antipodal lensing can trigger seismic events on the opposite side of the globe - so what if there were two eruptions, one in Krakatoa and one in Ilopango a few years apart... the second eruption triggered by the first explosive one?

It's nice to see someone using the historically accurate Anno Domini for once.

I cant believe this is new but its so new at the same time you make absolutely brilliant documentaries you answered my prayers wow!!!

It is unimaginable that all the volcanoes in Indonesia are located in Europe/America/Africa, maybe at that time there were many casualties due to natural disasters and some of the land became islands. Because we know that more than 10 dangerous volcanoes in the world are also in Indonesia. Just look at the geography of Indonesia, which was torn apart by the devastating natural disasters there. Initially mainland Indonesia was joined by Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand and Australia. Natural disasters in Indonesia often cause many victims

Not a mystery if you read about something called "recurrent nova", an event during which an "external layer" (this is extremely simplified) is blown out of the sun like a nova (technically more like a corona ejection but all around the Sun). The build up to the event is a decrease in Sun brightness as the density on the outer layer increases (down to the brightness of the Moon, hence the stories of dark sun and the two moons). During the eruption, the solar system is full of "dust" resulting the apparent disappearance of all other stars (hence the stories of falling stars and dark skies). Of corse, such and eruption cause panic and severe climate changes. There is also increasing evidence that this is all related to Cimate Cycles and Magnetic Excursion cycles (with lengths of 12000, 6000, 3000, 1500, 750 and 375 years long). Below some examples (note that the shorter the cycle the weaker it is, and the further we look the harder it is to notice smaller cycles): ±375 years ago years ago (375-Year Cycle): Maunders Minimum mini-ice age (1645 to 1715), the 30 years of war (1650-1680). The Ming Dynasty collapse (1644, severe drought) ±750 years ago (750-year cycle): Volcanic event (1315-1320) caused damaged crops and mass cattle death, resulting in the Great Famine (1315-1322), resulting in mass death and malnourished/weakened people, resulting in the spread of the Plague (1331-1353) which was a bubonic plague, resulting in the weakening of empires, resulting in wars like the 100 year war (1337-1453) ±1125 years ago (375-Year Cycle): Medieval Warm Period (900-1300) made climate wet in Europe, arid in North America, may have depopulated the Great Plains of North America, then The Crusades (1095-1291), The Khmer Civilization collapse (1000-1200, experts don’t know why), The Maya Civilization collapse (900, severe drought killed millions of Maya people due to famine and lack of water), The Tang Dynasty collapse (907, crop failure and famine associated with drought), The Tiwanaku Empire (1000, drought, 10-meter drop in lake level at this time), Anasazi Collapse (1150, North America experienced a 300-year drought called the Great Drought) ±1500 years ago (1500-Year Cycle): "The worst year to be alive" (536): A volcanic eruption caused climate cooling, resulting in crop failures, then famine (weakening people), then the Plague of Justinian (541-549) which was a bubonic plague. ±3000 years ago (3000-Year Cycle): Sterno Etrussia Excursion. Late Bronze Age collapse (Hittites in 1178 BC, Mycenaean Greece in 1050 BC, the collapse affected a large area covering much of Southeast Europe, West Asia and North Africa, 300-year drought event), Indus Civilization collapse (1000 BC, experts don’t know why but think it was climate change and famine) ±6000 years ago (6000-Year Cycle): Solovki/Noah/Sumerian Excursion: Nothing to do with religion, instead massive floods all over the world. Çatalhöyük Civilization collapse (flourished 9000-7000 years ago then suddenly vanished, experts don’t know why), surviving Sumerians came to Mesopotamia (5,300 years ago), first city states (5,000 years ago), Prehistoric Egypt (5000 years ago), massive advances in agriculture like irrigation, all known domestication of animals and plants (4,500 years ago). Note that this event was so brutal that barely anything was left from previous civilizations. ±12,000 years ago (12,000-Year Cycle: Gothenburg/Younger Dryas Excursion: Global Mega-Faunal Extinction (remember the frozen Mammoths?) ±18,000 years ago (6000-Year Cycle): Hilina Pali/Lake Biwa/Lake Imuruk Excursion. Unknown effects. ±24,000 years ago (12,000-Year Cycle): Lake Mungo/Last Glacial Max Excursion: Mega-Faunal Extinction mainly in Australia/Eurasia/Africa ±36,000 years ago (12,000-Year Cycle): Mono Excursion: Mega-Faunal Extinction mainly in North America ±48,000 years ago (12,000-Year Cycle): Leschamp/Napoli Excursion: Global Mega-Faunal Extinction. ±60,000 years ago (12,000-Year Cycle): Norwegian Greenland Sea/Gaotai Excursion. Unknown effects. ±72,000 years ago (12,000-Year Cycle): Toba Excursion, known as the greatest bottleneck in human history. Caused 1,000 years of volcanic winter. It is estimated that less than 10,000 people survived on the entire planet. Note: Remember the 12000-Year Mayan Calendar? Well, now it makes sense.

Nice voice for listening to.. I am very much interested in history here on you tube. To bad we didn’t have you tube to teach us about history back in the day. Just found this channel and subscribed . Thanks for these videos

Just terrifying but interesting too. Is this what would happen in the case of nuclear winter, or would it be worse.

I love the content! Just wish the volume was a bit higher.

Loooove your work -- keep it up!

Tonight I discovered this channel and I love it. I love this subject and love to read everything about our world. It's 3am and I'm looking at this video. Thank You.

That was fascinating...I listen to these at work in my headphones as I'm welding and when I'm chilling on the weekends..great work thank you

Very impressive. The sun is so powerful. Wow

It bothers me that they claimed to hear a loud bang in china but the people were like, it’s possible to detect rumbling as if hearing thunder a long distance away after the initial shockwave dissipates, which to my very limited perspective indicates that they wouldn’t have heard a bang in china so much as it would have been a rumbling and yet the narrator was like, yep they said it’s possible.

I wonder if Yellowstone has the potential to have such an impact on the world.

Temperature reduction of 2 or 3 degrees C would not have been nearly enough to alter climate so drastically. It had to be more like 10 to 15 degrees.

Was the a massive volcanic eruption around that time? That could definitely explain it.

I'd like to understand the formation of the incredibly hard Quartsite formations in eastern SD. How/why did they form? And how can such soft rock pipe stone, exist only miles away? Are these formations connected?

Fascinating. This could happen at any time. We have been lucky.

I love what you do!! Keep em coming.,❤️❤️❤️

Even from the beginning I can tell they're describing a major volcanic eruption that affected the climate of the world.

If we know *this* happened in 536AD , I cannot imagine what it was like when the fountains of the deep opened up and asteroids rained down.

Exceptional cgi, and the most likely reality. Very good job!!

Thank you for uploading this super interesting documentary 🌝

I have read one particular footnote about human biology suggesting that because human beings can eat and draw nourishment from rotting fruit and vegetables, which also hints at the origins of alcohol as a drug, the species may have endured such catastrophes as a two year long winter when crops would have failed and fruits on the vine gone bad. We can eat bad fruit, or distill it and get drunk, and sit back and wait till the sun comes out again.

To find a piece of wood from over a thousand years ago,is a miracle in its self.🌳

Sounds like the week we had smoke from forest fires over our area. If you've never experienced the sun being red then a little light dot in the dark sky and ash falling everywhere, then get ready... Well be in for another round of it soon enough.

What a fascinating documentary!

The Jupiter-Saturn conjunction is easily the most written about astrological phenomenon in history. Called the Great Conjunction or the Chronocrator - as in time-keeper - it occurs every 19.85 years. But the alignments form far greater cycles of 60 years, 180 years, and so on. There was a conjunction in 531. This may explain the darkening of the Sun in 536 AD -- the darkening probably was multiple solar flares directly affecting weather on the Earth. Massive sunspots along the surface of the Sun will be a precursor to eminent Coronal Mass Ejections.

I like this documentary and appreciate the knowledge of this.Much thanks.

Amazing, for years the effects lingered wow.

I remember when a volcano erupted, I believe it was Mt. St. Helens in the Northwest of America. My boys were young, so it was possibly around 1986 or there abouts. (I wish I could remember the exact year, but maybe someone can?) Anyway, for near 2 years on the west coast of America there was no summer here or much sun at all! Here in 'sunny' California of all places!I I wonder if I imagined it or did it really happen, does anyone recall this?

This has happened even more recently. Look up the Little Ice Age that lasted from 1300 -1850 .

I could listen to the Sigurtsen professor talk for hours. His voice has a melodic cadence that’s very relaxing.

Whats crazy that if this happened now, we would know why, but would still suffer the same as those in 536.

536 is not the most recent. 1815 and 1816 in particular. 1816 is 'the year without summer'. Attributable to Mt. Tambor.

I really enjoy fact based shows. With "truth" being facts reported through a biased lens it is refreshing to find the evidence and facts put on display.

my intuition: it was the sun, and the dust came from the sun, also. the dust would have been understood by the writers. they all specified: the sun was dark, not that the sky was obscured. we’re due for another mini nova event very soon. 👑 love, david

The humans living during this time had to be terrified. The Sun disappeared and they had no reason to think it would ever return.

14 to 15 century but it was not just Krakatoa that event was caused by another more incredible event that made the Krakatoa event much less destructive then it would have been on it own I think this other event cause a great number of volcanoes to erupt simultaneously but then kind of muffled them out and washed away much of the evidence

when the Parent of Krakatoa blew up. black tectites all over SE Asia. Creating the Islands of Java and Sumatra were no longer connected. Dendrochronology of peat bogs in Ireland showed the event. I'm glad it's being shown as another documentary..

This was probably what it was like when Thera erupted too. I am constantly haunted by that particular eruption for some reason :c

The lake Taupo volcanic eruption was determined by Colin J.N. Wilson the Professor of Vocanology of Victoria University and others in the year of 180 AD to correct my previous statement that the date was 86 AD

This is my new best channel. Love documentaries. Best ones here. Thank You 😊

Great video thanks for sharing this information.