When is world ending? If atomic scientists are to be believed, we have 90 seconds to the apocalypse! Wait, don’t take those seconds literally! So, what exactly it means when everyone says that doomsday clock has been set at 90 seconds to midnight? When is this happening? And what’s doomsday clock anyway? If all these questions are troubling you, we have got you covered.
Doomsday clock was set by the scientists behind the Manhattan Project. Albert Einstein, University of Chicago scientists and J Robert Oppenheimer set up the ‘doomsday clock’ in 1947, two years after the first atomic bomb was dropped on Japanese cities. the theoretical point of the doomsday clock was putting the imagery of nuclear explosion and apocalypse to make people understand the very real threat to humanity and to planet Earth. The annual exercise involves Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists’ Science and Security Board in consultation with its Board of Sponsors setting the doomsday clock. The sponsors include nine Nobel winners.
The conflict in Ukraine, coupled with the escalating global dependence on nuclear weapons, heightens the potential for nuclear escalation. Notably, China, Russia, and the United States are investing substantial resources in the expansion or modernization of their nuclear arsenals. This further compounds the persistent risk of nuclear warfare, whether due to inadvertent error or miscalculation, the 2024 bulletin said.
The atomic scientists said that they are setting the ‘Doomsday Clock’ at 90 seconds to midnight. The scientists say that the decision has been taken as human race continues to face grave danger. They also added that the decision should not be taken as a “sign that the international security situation has eased.”