World warned to ‘pay attention’ to today’s Doomsday Clock announcement

Today the world will find out if we’re a step closer to Armageddon.

Attacks on shipping vessels in the Red Sea have also become more frequent, sparking fears of a supply chain issue and further problems with the global food chain.

Rachel Bronson, the president and CEO of the  Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, works to oversee the clock each year.

She told Metro.co.uk: ‘Each year, we ask two questions. Is humanity safer, or at greater risk this year, compared to last year when we last set it? 

‘And is humanity safer, or at greater risk this year compared to the last 75 plus years?’

To make a decision on where to set the clock’s time, Ms Bronson said the Bulletin reviews key events in the last year to come up with a ‘blunt measure’ – a clock time – to work out how near humanity is to disaster.

But Ms Bronson said she hopes that rather than spark panic, the clock time would instead generate valuable discussions about our future, and make change happen.

She added: ‘How do you sustain those conversations throughout the year?

‘We know that there’s a lot of issues competing for people’s attention, but by starting the conversation in January, what we hope is that over the course of the year, people check back in with us or counterpart organizations that are working on it to think about ways that they can make a difference, even if it feels small.’

‘Unfortunately, that’s because it’s gotten a lot more dangerous again, and that’s kind of when people start to pay attention.’

Citing issues ranging from major nuclear powers withdrawing from treaties to conflict in Ukraine and the Middle East, Ms MacDonald said it’s ‘inevitable’ that we’re at the beginning of a ‘new arms race’ similar to that during the Cold War.

But she emphasized that in the past, the clock has been moved back – and by paying attention to the world now, it’s possible to still make change.