WASHINGTON: The symbolic Doomsday Clock, maintained by the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, will remain at 90 seconds to midnight for 2026, marking the third consecutive year at the closest point to global catastrophe in its history. The announcement underscores persistent and escalating existential threats to humanity.
The Bulletin’s Science and Security Board (SASB) cited continuous high-level danger from multiple fronts. The primary concerns remain Russia’s ongoing war in Ukraine and the erosion of nuclear arms control frameworks, which heighten the risk of direct conflict between nuclear powers. Modernization and expansion of nuclear arsenals, particularly by China, Russia, and the United States, were highlighted as a dangerous new arms race.
A significant new focus of the 2026 assessment is the escalating militarization of space. The Board expressed grave concern over former U.S. President Donald Trump’s repeated public advocacy for a “Golden Dome” national security initiative. This proposed space-based missile defense shield, which Trump has linked to strategic control of locations like Greenland, is viewed as a major potential destabilizer.
Experts warn that the development and deployment of such offensive or defensive weapons in space could trigger a catastrophic conflict beyond Earth’s atmosphere. “Trump’s Golden Dome plan, which calls for weapons in space, could provoke a backlash from Russia and China, raising the risk of space war,” the SASB cautioned. They fear this, coupled with the collapse of existing arms treaties, creates a perfect storm for unchecked proliferation and confrontation.
The stalled clock does not indicate stability but a continued state of acute peril. “The fact that the Doomsday Clock did not move is a dire warning in itself,” said Bulletin President and CEO, Rachel Bronson. “It underscores that humanity faces an unprecedented convergence of technological and geopolitical threats that require urgent global action to pull back from the brink.”
