Scientists move back ‘Doomsday Clock’ one minute from midnight
Jan. 18, 2010
Scientists on Thursday moved back the minute hand of the ''Doomsday Clock'' by one minute, citing ''a more hopeful state of world affairs'' in threat posed by nuclear weapons and climate change.
The clock, symbolically measuring the likelihood that mankind will begin nuclear war, is now six minutes to midnight, which represents global catastrophe.
The U.S. magazine Bulletin of Atomic Scientists, which created the clock in 1947 and has since maintained it, ascribed the latest decision to efforts by global leaders to realize a nuclear-free world.
''We are poised to bend the arc of history toward a world free of nuclear weapons. For the first time since atomic bombs were dropped in 1945, leaders of nuclear weapons states are cooperating to vastly reduce their arsenals and secure all nuclear bomb-making material,'' the scientists, including 19 Nobel laureates, said in a statement.
''And for the first time ever, industrialized and developing countries alike are pledging to limit climate-changing gas emissions that could render our planet nearly uninhabitable,'' they said, hailing the move as ''signs of a growing political will to tackle the two gravest threats to civilization.''
The scientists said they were particularly encouraged by U.S. President Barack Obama's initiative aimed at realizing a nuclear-free world.
''With a more pragmatic, problem-solving approach, not only has Obama initiated new arms reduction talks with Russia, he has started negotiations with Iran to close its nuclear enrichment program, and directed the U.S. government to lead a global effort to secure loose fissile material in four years,'' the scientists said.
But they warned against excessive optimism, saying, ''By shifting the hand back from midnight by only one additional minute, we emphasize how much needs to be accomplished, while at the same time recognizing signs of collaboration among the United States, Russia, the European Union, India, China, Brazil, and others on nuclear security and on climate stabilization.''
The last time the clock was moved was 2007 when it was pushed two minutes closer to midnight.
When it was launched in 1947, the clock was initially set at seven minutes to midnight. It was as close as two minutes to midnight in 1953 in the wake of U.S. and Soviet hydrogen bomb tests, and as far away as 17 minutes to midnight in 1991, when the Cold War era ended.
(Distributed by Kyodo News on Jan. 14, 2010)
The clock, symbolically measuring the likelihood that mankind will begin nuclear war, is now six minutes to midnight, which represents global catastrophe.
The U.S. magazine Bulletin of Atomic Scientists, which created the clock in 1947 and has since maintained it, ascribed the latest decision to efforts by global leaders to realize a nuclear-free world.
''We are poised to bend the arc of history toward a world free of nuclear weapons. For the first time since atomic bombs were dropped in 1945, leaders of nuclear weapons states are cooperating to vastly reduce their arsenals and secure all nuclear bomb-making material,'' the scientists, including 19 Nobel laureates, said in a statement.
''And for the first time ever, industrialized and developing countries alike are pledging to limit climate-changing gas emissions that could render our planet nearly uninhabitable,'' they said, hailing the move as ''signs of a growing political will to tackle the two gravest threats to civilization.''
The scientists said they were particularly encouraged by U.S. President Barack Obama's initiative aimed at realizing a nuclear-free world.
''With a more pragmatic, problem-solving approach, not only has Obama initiated new arms reduction talks with Russia, he has started negotiations with Iran to close its nuclear enrichment program, and directed the U.S. government to lead a global effort to secure loose fissile material in four years,'' the scientists said.
But they warned against excessive optimism, saying, ''By shifting the hand back from midnight by only one additional minute, we emphasize how much needs to be accomplished, while at the same time recognizing signs of collaboration among the United States, Russia, the European Union, India, China, Brazil, and others on nuclear security and on climate stabilization.''
The last time the clock was moved was 2007 when it was pushed two minutes closer to midnight.
When it was launched in 1947, the clock was initially set at seven minutes to midnight. It was as close as two minutes to midnight in 1953 in the wake of U.S. and Soviet hydrogen bomb tests, and as far away as 17 minutes to midnight in 1991, when the Cold War era ended.
(Distributed by Kyodo News on Jan. 14, 2010)
