The Doomsday Clock was created in 1947, and illustrates how close we are to “destroying our world with dangerous technologies of our own making.” According to the official Doomsday Clock website, the clock is “a metaphor, a reminder of the perils we must address if we are to survive on the planet.” Currently, the clock is set at two minutes to midnight – and the closer it gets to midnight, the closer the world is to being destroyed.
When does the clock time change?
An announcement is due to be made on the Doomsday Clock today, Thursday, January 24 at 10.00am eastern time (3.00pm GMT).
The announcement can be watched live either on the official website or on their Twitter and Facebook pages.
News event speakers for the Doomsday Clock announcement on January 24th, 2019 will include:
- Rachel Bronson, president and CEO, Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists;
- Former California Governor Jerry Brown, executive chair, Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists;
- Former U.S. Secretary of Defense William J. Perry, chair, Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists Board of Sponsors;
- Robert Rosner, William E. Wrather Distinguished Service professor in the Department of Astronomy and Astrophysics and Physics at the University of Chicago, and chair, Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists Science and Security Board;
- Sharon Squassoni, research professor of practice, Institute for International Science and Technology Policy, Elliott School of International Affairs, The George Washington University, and member of the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists Science and Security Board for nuclear risk;
- Susan Solomon, atmospheric chemist, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and Ellen Swallow Richards professor of Atmospheric Chemistry & Climate Science at Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and member of the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists Science and Security Board for climate change; and
- Herb Lin, senior research scholar for cyber policy and security, Stanford University, Hank J. Holland fellow in Cyber Policy and Security, Hoover Institution at Stanford, and member of theBulletin of the Atomic Scientists Science and Security Board for cyber/disruptive technologies.
The clock is currently at the closest time to midnight it has ever been due to the current nuclear risk.
In January 2018, the Doomsday Clock’s minute hand was set forward by 30 seconds, to two minutes before midnight, the closest it has been to apocalypse since 1953 in the early years of the Cold War.
The Doomsday Clock’s movement in 2018 was influenced in large part by the failure of world leaders to respond effectively to the looming threats of nuclear war and climate change.
The only other time the hand was set this close to midnight was in 1953 when the minute hand was moved to two minutes to midnight.
This was after the United States and the Soviet Union each tested their first thermonuclear weapons within six months of one another.
When the Doomsday Clock was first created and in the years following Bulletin Editor Eugene Rabinowitch decided whether the hands of the clock should be moved.
This was based on him being a leader in the international disarmament movement, as well as being in constant conversation with scientists and experts within and outside governments across the world.
Since Rabinowitch’s death in 1973 Bulletin’s Science and Security Board took up the mantle of deciding when the clock hands should be moved.
The board meet twice a year to discuss world events and alter the clock as necessary.
On the board are scientists and other experts with in-depth knowledge of climate science and nuclear technology who also provide their expertise to governments and international bodies.
Does it signal the End of the World?
Whilst the idea of the clock being so close to midnight can seem daunting – the aim of the clock is to inform the public as to the dangers there are to humanity so long as nuclear weapons exist.
The official Doomsday Clock website states: “As long as nuclear weapons exist and can be used, the risk that we could destroy civilisation also exists.
“Such a calamity has not occurred because national leaders have so far heeded warnings and because at critical times in the past 70 years, they have set up communication channels with adversaries, negotiated treaties to control the weapons, taken steps to radically reduce arsenals, and engaged erstwhile enemies in cooperative projects.”
Similarly, it aims to educate on the Earth’s climate – and the consequences of droughts, fishing and sea level rising which threaten survival.
The clock aims to show the things in the world which should be closely monitored and wants to make people aware of growing threats.