Averting the Risk of Nuclear Annihilation (For Now)
A ceremony of the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists hosted at The New York Academy of Sciences set the “Doomsday Clock” back by a minute. But what does that mean going forward?
Published January 14, 2010
By Adrienne J. Burke
In a recent ceremony at The New York Academy of Sciences (the Academy), the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists moved the minute hand of its famous “Doomsday Clock” back one minute, from 5 minutes before midnight to 6 minutes before midnight, reflecting the group’s estimation of a slightly reduced threat to the Earth from nuclear proliferation, climate change, and biotechnology. For the first time ever, the event was open to the general public via a live Web feed.
Academy President’s Council member Leon Lederman was a co-chair of the Board of Sponsors of the Bulletin of Atomic Scientists. The Board announced their intention to re-energize a national discussion on the reduction of nuclear weapons stockpiles, and a commitment to fight proliferation and encourage disarmament efforts.
“With a new administration in Washington, it will be an unprecedented opportunity to re-examine our policy on missile defense, nuclear weapons, nuclear proliferation, and nuclear energy,” said the organizers. “There are a number of different areas where U.S. policy has been stagnant or gone backward, and there is a tremendous need for a sensible strategy…We will use the talent and reputation of the Board of Sponsors to be leading voices; to reinvigorate and raise the profile on these nuclear-related issues, so vital to our long-term peace and safety.”
The History of the Doomsday Clock
The last time the Doomsday Clock minute hand moved was in January 2007, when the Clock’s minute hand was pushed forward by two minutes, from seven to five minutes before midnight. Factors influencing the latest Doomsday Clock change include international negotiations on nuclear disarmament and nonproliferation, expansion of civilian nuclear power, the possibilities of nuclear terrorism, and climate change.
Founded in 1945 by University of Chicago scientists who had helped develop the first atomic weapons in the Manhattan Project, the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists subsequently created the Doomsday Clock in 1947 as a way to convey both the imagery of apocalypse (midnight) and the contemporary idiom of nuclear explosion (countdown to zero). 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 19 Nobel Laureates. The Clock has become a universally recognized indicator of the world’s vulnerability to catastrophe from nuclear weapons, climate change, and emerging technologies in the life sciences.
Also read: The Dire Climate Change Wakeup Call
