Is humanity doomed? Doomsday Clock to be updated to determine our fate

The Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists ( BAS ) updates the Doomsday Clock every January .

Last year , the clock sat at 90 seconds to midnight - the closest humanity had come to destruction since the creation of the atomic bomb.

But with war still raging in Ukraine and chaos across the Middle East , experts say the risk of nuclear war is now 'far too high' Dr Haydn Belfield , research associate at the Centre for the Study of Existential Risk , told MailOnline : 'We are probably closer to nuclear war than at any point in the last forty years' .

The BAS ' 2024 report noted that the war between Israel and Hamas has the potential to spiral into a wider conflict - a prediction which could become true.

The growing instability among the holders of nuclear weapons increases the risk that the world's conflicts could escalate into a nuclear exchange.

Climate change is set to become the hottest year on record with average surface temperatures rising 1.55C (2.79F) above the pre-industrial average.

AI has increased the risk of conflict rapidly escalating into nuclear exchange as machine learning becomes integrated into military systems.

Doomsday Clock is now 100 seconds to midnight , the closest we've ever come to total destruction.

The closer to midnight the clock moves the closer to annihilation humanity is.

The Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists adjusted the Doomsday Clock to midnight in 2020 .