2012: the beginning of the end or why the end of the world will not be?

Remember the fear of Y2K (2000)? He came and went without any problems due to adequate planning and analysis of the situation. December 21, 2012, the date, played on in many films with beautiful special effects, will not be the end of the world, as far as we know. It will, however, be the date of the next winter solstice.

Much, like Y2K, 2012, was analyzed and the end of the world assumptions were well studied. Unlike some general concepts, the concept of “science” disappears when we pull the end of the world by the ears to 2012. Below, NASA scientists have answered frequently asked questions regarding 2012.

Question (Q): Are there any threats to the Earth in 2012? Many websites say the world ends in December 2012.
Answer (A): Nothing bad will happen to the Earth in 2012. Our planet will be all right for more than 4 billion years, and credible scientists around the world do not know any threat associated with 2012.
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Q: What is the origin of the prediction that the world will end in 2012?
A: The story began with the assumption that Nibiru, a planet that seemed to be detected by the Sumerians, is heading towards Earth. This catastrophe was originally predicted in May 2003, but when nothing happened, the end of the world date was moved forward to December 2012. Then these two fables were connected with the end of one of the cycles in the ancient Mayan calendar during the winter solstice in 2012 - hence the end of the world on December 21, 2012 was predicted.

Q: Does the Mayan calendar really end in December 2012?
A: As the calendar on your kitchen wall will not cease to exist after December 31, so the Mayan calendar will not cease to exist on December 21, 2012. This date of the end of the Mayan long count period, but then, like the calendar, begins again on January 1, another long count period begins.

Q: Is it possible the phenomenon in which the planets are arranged so that they will affect the Earth?
A: In the next few decades, planetary groupings are not foreseen, the Earth will not cross the galactic plane in 2012, but even if a grouping occurs, its influence on the Earth will be insignificant. In December of each year, the Earth and the Sun line up with the approximate center of the Milky Way galaxy, but this annual event does not matter.

Q: Is there a planet or a brown dwarf called Nibiru or Planet X or Eris, approaching Earth and threatening our planet with widespread destruction?
A: Nibiru and other stories about fictional planets are an Internet hoax. For such statements there is no factual basis. If any Nibiru or Planet X were real and flew to meet the Earth in 2012, astronomers have tracked it for at least the last ten years, and it will be visible already with the naked eye. Obviously, it does not exist. Eris is real, but it is a dwarf planet, similar to Pluto, which will remain in the outer solar system; it will not be able to get closer to Earth for more than 4 billion kilometers.

Q: What is pole shift theory? Is it true that the crust makes 180-degree rotations around the core in a matter of days, if not hours?
A: In the process of rotation of the Earth, a turn is impossible. There are slow movements of the continents (for example, Antarctica was near the equator hundreds of millions of years ago), but this has nothing to do with theories about pole change. Nevertheless, many sites-messengers of catastrophes have created a bait for fooling people. They argue that there is a connection between the rotation and the magnetic polarity of the Earth, which changes irregularly (changes in the poles occur every average of 400,000 years). As far as we know, such pole shifts can not cause any harm to life on Earth. Yes, and it is unlikely to happen in the next few millennia, in any case.

Q: Is the Earth in danger of falling into a meteorite in 2012?
A: The Earth has always been the subject of hits by comets and asteroids, although large tables are very rare. The last big collision was 65 million years ago, and this led to the extinction of dinosaurs. NASA astronomers today are conducting a study called the “Spaceguard Survey” to find any large asteroids approaching the Earth long before the impact. We have already determined that there are no threatening asteroids as large as the one that killed the dinosaurs. All this work is done openly. Its results are published every day on the NASA NEO Program Office website, so you can see for yourself that nothing predicts collisions in 2012.

Q: What do NASA scientists think about the predictions of the approaching end of the world?
A: At least one statement about natural disasters or drastic changes in 2012 is scientifically based? Where is the proof? They are not, and for all the fictional statements, whether they are created in books, films, documentaries or on the Internet, we cannot change this obvious fact. There is no convincing evidence for any statement made in support of unusual events relating to December 2012.

Q: Is there a danger of giant solar storms predicted for 2012?
A: Solar activity has a regular cycle, with peaks about every 11 years. These peaks of solar flare activity can cause some interruptions in satellite communications, although engineers invent electronics protected from solar storms. But there are no particular risks associated with 2012. The next maximum of solar activity will occur in 2012-2014 and, according to forecasts, will not go beyond the usual solar cycle, without any difference from previous cycles throughout history.