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Relax, World Isn't Ending in 2012

Scientists are busy debunking growing urban legend

By John Johnson,  Newser Staff

Posted Oct 17, 2009 12:36 PM CDT

(Newser) – The statement issued by a Los Angeles observatory and Sky & Telescope magazine this week says it all: "The world will not come to an end on Dec. 21, 2012." It seems a confluence of events—the coming end of the Mayan calendar, for one, and the marketing of a new apocalyptic movie, for another—is fueling hysteria that Armageddon is just a few years away. It's reached such a fever pitch that scientists who would normally ignore such things have to keep reassuring people that it's all hokum, reports the LA Times.

"Two years ago, I got a question a week about it," says a NASA scientist who hosts a Q&A website. "Now I'm getting a dozen a day. Two teenagers said they didn't want to see the end of the world so they were thinking of ending their lives." A slew of books and pseudo-scientific websites—the latter sometimes created by people trying to sell the former—are feeding the fire, with many foretelling a collision with a rogue planet. For the record, it's named Nibiru, though it also goes by Planet X.

An artist's rendition of the solar system.
An artist's rendition of the solar system.   (AP Photo/ESA/HO)
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The calendar on my desk ends on December 31, 2009. I do not interpret that to mean the world is going to end that day. - NASA's David Morrison, on the end of the Mayan calendar in 2012

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COMMENTS
Showing 3 of 52 comments
freethemall
Oct 20, 2009 9:48 AM CDT
One more thing, Spydig. You haven't read Al Gore's book, nor seen his movie. Oh, you may have glanced through his book for the purpose of debunking it, and you may have seen snippets of his documentary, but you've not considered the point of view he espouses with an open mind. Otherwise you would know the truth. But that would be inconvenient for you, wouldn't it?
BleeBloo
Oct 19, 2009 4:02 AM CDT
Oh god where can I buy tickets?
Spudsy
Oct 19, 2009 1:35 AM CDT
Beautiful post Galileo. I will use those thought in the future. Oh, and it's nice that the catholic church admitted that you were right, in 19 f@cking 92. How long are we going to be controlled or influenced by these superstitious f@cks?

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