USA End of the world in 89 seconds: Researchers warn of disaster
89 seconds to the end of the world: in view of the unstable world situation, scientists are warning of a global catastrophe. Researchers from the "Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists" set the symbolic time until the end of the world at 89 seconds for the first time, as they announced in Washington. In 2023, the researchers set the hands of the "Doomsday Clock" to 90 seconds before midnight for the first time and left it at that in 2024. Now they have gone one step further and warned: "The world is on a course of unprecedented risk, and continuing on the current course is a form of madness."
28.01.2025, 18:00
28.01.2025, 18:01
SDA
Former Colombian President and Nobel Peace Prize winner Juan Manuel Santos said: "With 89 seconds to midnight, the Doomsday Clock is closer to catastrophe than ever before in its history." Humanity is confronted with existential threats.
Climate change, nuclear weapons, health crises and misinformation
"The threat of nuclear conflict is greater than ever before," warned Santos. The only remaining major arms control agreement between the USA and Russia is due to expire next year. The climate crisis is also coming to a head. "2024 was the hottest year since records began, triggering devastating climate shocks." It is therefore particularly alarming that US President Donald Trump has announced the United States' withdrawal from the Paris Climate Agreement.
"The US announcement to withdraw from the World Health Organization is another worrying decision that will have a huge impact on global health security," he lamented. The increase in outbreaks of infectious diseases is worrying. Urgent action is also needed to curb the spread of misinformation and conspiracy theories.
The symbolic position of the "Doomsday Clock" is communicated once a year. In 2020, the clock was symbolically set to 100 seconds before midnight for the first time. According to researchers, the risk of humanity wiping itself out through nuclear war or self-inflicted global warming is now greater than at any time since the clock was invented in 1947.
