The Bulletin of ​the Atomic Scientists set the clock to 85 seconds before midnight, the theoretical point of annihilation. That is four seconds closer than it was set last year. The Chicago-based nonprofit created the clock in 1947 during ‍the Cold War tensions that followed World War Two ​to warn the public about how close humankind was to destroying the world.

The symbolic Doomsday Clock managed by the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, has been moved forward by 3 seconds this year, making it now 85 seconds to midnight.

"The Doomsday Clock is now at 85 seconds to midnight, the closest it has been in the history of the clock," Bulletin Science and Security Board Chair Daniel Holz said.