Anti-Doomsday Day - Today!

by Salman Hameed

Okay this is great! And funny too. The Astronomical Society of the Pacific (ASP) wants you to reclaim the calendar from the end-of-the-world crazies of December 21, 2012. So they have their own Anti-Doomsday Day - today! Well of course - 12/12/12 - and very soon even the time (on the US east coast at least) will read 12:12:12. Nooooo!! Oh I meant to say, Yeah!!

So happy Anti-Doomsday Day to you!

Here is the rationale behind it:

While many pundits and prognosticators lament the supposed end of the world on December 21, 2012 (thanks to misinterpreting Mayan predictions), here at the ASP we encourage everyone to go in the opposite – and accurate – direction. Thus, we are declaring December 12, 2012 as Anti-Doomsday Day in celebration of rational thinking and reasoned discourse. 

We also feel that, in many respects, the number 12 is most auspicious: contemporary calendars (12 months in the year), chronology (12 hours of day and night), traditional zodiac (12 astrological signs*), Greek mythology (12 Olympic gods and goddesses), holiday folklore (12 days of Christmas), Shakespeare (Twelfth Night), and of course in our culinary world (dozen eggs, case of wine)! 

More importantly, in astronomy Mars is 12 light minutes from the Sun, the average temperature of the Earth is 12 degrees Celsius, and Jupiter takes 12 years to orbit the Sun.
Last but not least, this date structure – a triple set of the same two-digit number – will not occur again until 2112! So, at 12 noon on 12/12/12, please take a moment to thank all who keep us on the path of science literacy. Please also feel free to show your support by donating $12, $24 or $36 dollars to the ASP!

Enjoy the day.