The Bulletin of Atomic Scientists will make an announcement at 10 a.m. ET about the Doomsday Clock.
The clock, first used in 1947, is a metaphor meant to measure how close humanity is to destroying civilization. In an uncharacteristic move, the scientists moved the clock by 30 seconds in 2017, to 2½ minutes to midnight. Typically, the clock is moved by the minute.
The bulletin said at the time: “The probability of global catastrophe is very high, and the actions needed to reduce the risks of disaster must be taken very soon.”
There have been heightened tensions between the U.S. and North Korea over the past few months, which could influence this year’s time.
Just two days into the new year, U.S. President Donald Trump responded to a remark by North Korean leader Kim Jong-un that he had a nuclear button on his desk by tweeting: “North Korean Leader Kim Jong Un just stated that the ‘Nuclear Button is on his desk at all times. Will someone from his depleted and food starved regime please inform him that I too have a Nuclear Button, but it is a much bigger & more powerful one than his, and my Button works!”
North Korean Leader Kim Jong Un just stated that the “Nuclear Button is on his desk at all times.” Will someone from his depleted and food starved regime please inform him that I too have a Nuclear Button, but it is a much bigger & more powerful one than his, and my Button works!
While there has been some easing of tensions between North and South Korea after they agreed to participate in the Winter Olympics as one team, there are concerns about North Korea’s nuclear missiles.
The country has reportedly conducted several tests of its rockets, with the latest — capable of delivering a nuclear warhead to North America — just last November.
The Doomsday Clock is a measurement of how close humanity is to destroying itself. (Tim Boyle/Getty Images)
The first time the Doomsday Clock moved was after the Soviet Union successfully tested its first atomic bomb in 1949. It moved from the original seven minutes to midnight, to three minutes to midnight.
The closest the clock has come is two minutes to midnight in 1953, after both the U.S. and Soviet Union tested their first nuclear bombs within six months of one another.
In 1991, the hands moved the farthest they’ve ever been: 17 minutes to midnight.