Symbolic Doomsday Clock moves to record 85 seconds to midnight, closest point in history
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The Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists has moved its symbolic Doomsday Clock to 85 seconds to midnight, the closest it has ever been since the clock’s creation in 1947, signaling the highest level of global risk yet recorded.
“The Doomsday Clock’s message cannot be clearer. Catastrophic risks are on the rise, cooperation is on the decline, and we are running out of time,” said Alexandra Bell, the president and CEO of the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists.
The clock, which is updated annually by the Bulletin’s Science and Security Board, reflects scientists’ assessment of how close humanity is to catastrophic destruction from human‑made threats. Officials cited a “failure of global leadership” and intensifying dangers including nuclear tensions, climate change, unregulated artificial intelligence, and biological threats as key factors in the decision.
In announcing the change on Tuesday, Bulletin leaders stressed that rising geopolitical tensions, including conflicts involving nuclear‑armed states, have eroded international cooperation on arms control and other existential risks.
The new setting underscores concerns over fraying nuclear treaties, unchecked technological advances, and worsening climate impacts despite longstanding warnings from scientists worldwide. While the Doomsday Clock is a metaphor rather than a prediction, its record‑close position to midnight is intended to urge urgent action from global leaders to address growing threats to human survival.
