Global Security Newswire

The symbolic Doomsday Clock is set to change time Thursday morning, though it is not known whether the minute hand will move closer to or further away from nuclear Armageddon, MSNBC reported (see GSN, Jan. 18, 2007).

The Bulletin of Atomic Scientists, a magazine concerned with the threats posed to humanity by nuclear weapons, is in charge of the clock and last changed its time in January 2007. The minute hand was moved from seven to five minutes to nuclear midnight to symbolize new threats.

Some of the determinants in whether to change the clock are international nuclear disarmament talks, nonproliferation efforts, the growth of civilian nuclear industries and nuclear terrorism threats.

The Doomsday Clock was first devised in 1947 as a way to illustrate how close humanity is to annihilation as the result of nuclear arms, other evolving scientific technologies and global warming (MSNBC.com, Jan. 11).