What If Humans Disappeared? - What Would Happen To Planet Earth If We Suddenly Vanished?

With the effects and damage of climate change being felt more intensely as the years go by, it's an interesting question to ponder, preferably late at night, in the company of like-minded friends, probably after one too many bongs, of what would happen if humanity vanished?

Climate change might be catastrophic for us and many of the species that currently share the planet with us, the earth itself will live on. But what would happen to the earth in the immediate aftermath of our departure?

In a episode of their show ASAP Science consider this idea, looking at how our sudden disappearance would impact the planet and the animals we left behind. The first few hours, they note, would be chaotic.

As power plants ran out of fuel and electric fences stopped working billions of livestock would be released into the wild. Roads would become rivers, weeds and trees would overtake the streets, and fires would consume our cities.

We would leave one sign of our legacy though: our plastic trash.

For more on how a world without humans might look, check out the National Geographic Channel documentary Aftermath: Population Zero below.