A recent discovery suggests that climate change led to the decline of a once-thriving Chinese civilization 4,500 years ago, with its people dispersing across the region.

If one were to travel to central China, in what is now Hubei province, 4,500 years ago, they might have been fortunate enough to discover a vibrant civilisation characterised by palaces, advanced engineering, and luxuries such as jade. However, in the generations that followed, this culture gradually declined, with its people dispersing across the region. Until now, the reasons behind the collapse of such a thriving civilisation were not well understood. A group of scientists now believe that...