What time is the Doomsday Clock today?
Today the Doomsday Clock reads 85 seconds to midnight (11:58:35 pm). The setting was announced on 27 January 2026 by the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists and stands until the next announcement, expected in late January 2027. It is the closest to midnight the clock has been since its creation in 1947.
Why 85 seconds?
The Bulletin does not publish a formula. Its Science and Security Board, advised by Nobel laureates, deliberates each year and picks a figure that sums up its judgement. For 2026 the stated reasons come down to four points:
- Nuclear: New START, the last treaty capping US and Russian arsenals, expires in February 2026 with no successor. For the first time since 1972, no negotiated limit applies to the world's two largest arsenals.
- Conflict: the war in Ukraine and tensions in the Middle East continue, with explicit nuclear threats from nuclear-armed states.
- Climate: 2024 and 2025 rank among the hottest years ever recorded; several governments are rolling back commitments.
- Technology: artificial intelligence is being built into military systems and the disinformation ecosystem faster than the rules meant to govern it.
Does it move during the year?
No. The official clock is set only once a year, in January. A serious event mid-year (a strike, a nuclear test, a pandemic) does not move it until the next announcement. That is exactly why this site offers a simulator: you can switch on today's crises and see what they would weigh, on our symbolic scale.
Recent settings
| Year | Setting | Move |
|---|---|---|
| 2020 | 100 s | −20 s (first time under 2 min) |
| 2023 | 90 s | −10 s (invasion of Ukraine) |
| 2024 | 90 s | unchanged |
| 2025 | 89 s | −1 s |
| 2026 | 85 s | −4 s |
The full timeline goes back to 1947.
What could move it back
Since 1947 the hand has moved back nine times, almost always for the same reason: a negotiated agreement between nuclear powers (the Test Ban Treaty in 1963, INF in 1988, START in 1991, New START in 2010). A successor to New START, or a resumed strategic dialogue between Washington, Moscow and Beijing, would be the likeliest signal of a move back in 2027. See what can turn the clock back.