The Doomsday Clock’s minute hand has been moved two minutes closer to midnight as experts warn we are closer than ever to a global catastrophe.
In a live international news conference, the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists (BAS) said that the threat of climate change and nuclear war posed a very serious threat to modern society.
Their symbolic clock is now set at three minutes to midnight, but while they say it is not too late to avert disaster ‘the window for action is closing rapidly’.
Scroll down for full timeline and video
In an announcement today the Bulletin of the Atomic
Scientists (BAS) has moved the minute hand of the symbolic Doomsday Clock
forward by two minutes. It is now at three minutes to midnight, the closest it
has been since 1984. The BAS moved the clock due to the threat of nuclear war
and climate change
The conference took place at 4pm GMT (11am EST) today.
Key topics discussed included evidence of accelerating
climate change and the increasing threat of nuclear war after failed promises
from various international governments.
‘The danger is great but our message is not one of
hopelessness,’ Kennette Benedict, executive director of the Bulletin of the
Atomic Scientists (BAS), said in the announcement.
She said that there was still time to act, but real
steps needed to be taken soon in order to ‘avert catastrophe.’
‘We find conditions to be so threatening that we are
moving the hand two minutes closer. It is now three minutes to midnight,’ she
continued.
Countries emitting carbon dioxide and other gases are
transforming Earth’s climate in a dangerous way, she said, leaving millions
vulnerable to rising sea levels, famines and 'killer storms.'
She also cited a failure by governments around the
world to reduce their nuclear arsenal, in particular the US and Russia.
In total it is estimated 16,300 nuclear weapons remain
in the world - and just 50 to 100 could produce massive casualties and long
lasting effects on the atmosphere.
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The BAS was founded in 1945 by University of Chicago
scientists who had helped develop the first atomic weapons in the Manhattan
Project. The physicists later set up the Clock in 1947 after their atomic bombs
hit Hiroshima and Nagasaki at the end of World War II (pictured)
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Tick tock: Here Kennette Benedict, executive director
of the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists (BAS), is shown unveiling the New
Doomsday Clock during a news conference in 2007. The BAS hosted a live
conference to reveal the Science and Security Board's decision to move the
clock two minutes closer to midnight
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Countries emitting carbon dioxide and other gases
(stock image shown) are transforming Earth’s climate in a dangerous way,
according to the BAS, leaving millions vulnerable to rising sea levels, famines
and 'killer storms.' The BAS want to see action taken to cap greenhouse
gases to 2°C above pre-industrial levels
‘Members of the BAS board are today imploring citizens
of the world to speak clearly and demand leaders take necessary steps,’ Ms
Benedict continued.
The BAS want to see action taken to cap greenhouse
gases to 2°C above pre-industrial levels, and reduce spending on nuclear
weapons.
‘We are not saying it is too late, but the window for
action is closing rapidly,’ she added.
‘The world needs to awaken from its lethargy. Moving
the clock hand inspires changes to help push the process along.’
The BAS was founded in 1945 by University of Chicago
scientists who had helped develop the first atomic weapons in the Manhattan
Project.
The physicists set up the Doomsday Clock in 1947 after
their atomic bombs hit Hiroshima and Nagasaki at the end of World War II.
Their Clock was
created to convey threats to humanity and the planet. Midnight represents
Doomsday, or when these threats will peak and cause a global catastrophe.
The BAS also cited a failure by governments around the
world to reduce their nuclear arsenal, in particular the US and Russia. In
total it is estimated 16,300 nuclear weapons remain in the world - and just 50
to 100 could produce massive casualties and long lasting effects on the
atmosphere (stock image shown)
Timeline with disaster: It was created to convey
threats to humanity and the planet, and midnight represents Doomsday, or when
these threats will peak and cause a global catastrophe. Click 'The Clock
Shifts' on the picture above to see an interactive timeline of the Clock's
history
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Climate threats: The announcement not only warned of
the threat of nuclear weapons, but also climate change as well. This graphic
from last year's Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) report shows
observed examples of climate change worldwide
The decision to move the minute hand of the Doomsday
Clock is made by the Bulletin's Board of Directors in consultation with its
Board of Sponsors, which includes 18 Nobel Laureates.
The Clock has become a universally recognised
indicator of the world's vulnerability to catastrophe from nuclear weapons,
climate change, and emerging technologies in life sciences.
Since it was set up, the hand on the clock has moved
18 times, and each move represents how the scientists view the world's chances
of survival in the face of these threats.
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This graphic details key changes and movements of the minute hand on the Doomsday Clock since 1947
THE DOOMSDAY CLOCK: TIMELINE OF HUMANITY'S DANCE WITH DISASTER
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Soaring global temperatures: Noaa's data revealed that
2014 was the hottest year since records began. This map is made up of
provisional data from 2014 up to October. Temperatures across the world
averaged 0.8°C (1.4°F) above 20th century averages - making 2014 the warmest
year in records dating back 134 years
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Terrorist threats: Recent attacks in France, following
the publication of a a caricature of the Prophet Muhammad in Charlie Hebdo
(pictured), could feature among the reasons for moving the Clock's minute hand
CLIMATE CHANGE POSES A THREAT
In 2014, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate
Change (IPCC) report said there was evidence of accelerating climate change,
and criticised the world's efforts to curb greenhouse emissions.
Global temperatures last year were the highest since
records began in 1880, according to US scientists.
And 14 of the 15 hottest years on record have occurred
in the 21st century, something highlighted by President Obama in his recent
State of the Union address.
Temperatures across the world averaged 0.8°C (1.4°F)
above 20th century averages - making 2014 the warmest year in records dating
back 134 years.
The Met Office had previously announced that 2014 was
the hottest year for the UK in records dating back to 1910.
Last year, President Obama revealed his country's
30-year plan to modernise its nuclear program.
The modernisation is expected to cost almost £660
billion ($1 trillion), according to the Centre on Nuclear Security.
In 2014, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate
Change (IPCC) report said there was evidence of accelerating climate change,
and criticised the world's efforts to curb greenhouse emissions.
Global temperatures last year were the highest since
records began in 1880, according to US scientists.
And 14 of the 15 hottest years on record have occurred
in the 21st century, something highlighted by President Obama in his recent
State of the Union address.
Temperatures across the world averaged 0.8°C (1.4°F)
above 20th century averages - making 2014 the warmest year in records dating
back 134 years.
The Met Office had previously announced that 2014 was
the hottest year for the UK in records dating back to 1910.
Last year, President Obama revealed his country's
30-year plan to modernise its nuclear program.
The modernisation is expected to cost almost £660
billion ($1 trillion), according to the Centre on Nuclear Security.
