Doomsday Clock Reset: Front & Center Again by the Bulletin of Atomic Scientists

Bulletin of Atomic Scientists since 1945

Doomsday Clock back in the news in this scary article headline from the Washington Examiner:

“Doomsday Clock set to 90 seconds, marking closest world has come to Armageddon”

Scientists unveiled the new time on the Doomsday Clock on Tuesday, moving the clock forward and claiming there are only 90 seconds until Armageddon and the end of humanity.

The number on the clock, which is not a real clock but a symbolic representation of how close the world is to ending, is set annually by the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists.

The number is determined by researchers who assess: (1) the number of nuclear weapons in the world; (2) wars; (3) the rate of sea levels; (4) government efforts; and, (5) other global issues that threaten humanity (The Washington Post).

The metaphoric clock has marked the world as “100 seconds to midnight” for the past two years, but the change to 90 seconds is now the closest time the world has come to cataclysm. Board members factored in the war in Ukraine when they turned the clock forward.

The 100 seconds was the closest the clock had come to midnight before Tuesday, having been set in 2020 after the global shutdown caused by COVID-19, and repeated in 2021. 

Climate change, rising nuclear tensions, and the spread of disinformation also played into the 2020 and 2021 decisions, according to the Bulletin.

Board member Steve Fetter told USA Today: “It's a way to remind people of issues that are so big they pose a threat to civilization as a whole.” 

The clock does not reflect an actual countdown but is supposed to judge whether the world is closer to ending than in its previous 76 years. This year, the Russian war in Ukraine played an important factor in the 22 board members' decision.

The clock was furthest from Armageddon in 1991, when it was wound to 17 minutes from midnight following the end of the Cold War.

Rachel Bronson (CEO) told the Washington Post: “The tension between the United States and Russia, who possess the world's two largest nuclear arsenals, is also a contributing factor. What we’ve been looking at is the unraveling of the international order … when two countries that control the largest nuclear arsenals in the world are at odds. And what we’re trying to say is that we really need to find a way to contain this crisis.”

The good news is that the Doomsday clock can be dialed back if treaties are reached and if breakthroughs happen in climate change and health crises.

My 2 Cents: Interesting and a bit scary article as well as enlightening at the same time – this kind of reporting by groups who track the status of mankind is important – and I say: Good job keep it up.

As for me nukes are truly the biggest threat to Earth and domestically and seems to be spreading worldwide is terrorism – more so than I have ever seen in my entire life and it does not seem to be diminishing, either.

January 6 and since here at home proves that beyond any doubt along with massive gun-related mass shooting just about everywhere (schools, churches, shopping centers, on subways, and drive-by randomly on our streets). That does not bode well for our future in my view.

Research site and food for thought.

Thanks for stopping by.