The "Neanderthal Apocalypse" refers to the relatively sudden disappearance of our closest ancient relatives about 40,000 years ago. While they survived in Eurasia for over 300,000 years, their story came to an end shortly after Homo sapiens arrived on the scene. The Main Theories of the "Apocalypse"
Scientists are still debating exactly what wiped them out, but most theories fall into a few key categories: Neanderthal Apocalypse
: Modern humans arrived with slightly different social structures and technology. We may have simply been more efficient at gathering resources, slowly pushing Neanderthals into marginal areas where they couldn't survive. The "Neanderthal Apocalypse" refers to the relatively sudden
: Massive volcanic eruptions during this period, such as the Campanian Ignimbrite eruption in Italy, might have caused a "volcanic winter," disrupting the food chain and making survival impossible for the already stressed Neanderthal populations. Did They Actually Go Extinct? We may have simply been more efficient at