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WARMING PREDICTED

The world is ending! No, really:

In its 4.5 billion years, Earth has evolved from its hot, violent birth to the celebrated watery blue planet that stands out in pictures from space. But in a new book, two noted University of Washington astrobiologists say the planet already has begun the long process of devolving into a burned-out cinder, eventually to be swallowed by the sun.

By their reckoning, Earth’s “day in the sun” has reached 4:30 a.m., corresponding to its 4.5 billion-year age. By 5 a.m., the 1 billion-year reign of animals and plants will come to an end. At 8 a.m. the oceans will vaporize. At noon – after 12 billion years – the ever-expanding sun, transformed into a red giant, will engulf the planet, melting away any evidence it ever existed and sending molecules and atoms that once were Earth floating off into space.

Better sign that Kyoto Protocol.

Posted by Tim B. on 01/27/2006 at 11:12 AM
  1. Well that’s it then. Nothing we can do. Tonight I’m gonna party like it’s 4:59 am.

    Posted by krossport on 2006 01 27 at 12:39 PM • permalink

  2. Whose day ends at noon? And how light is it at 4:30 AM in Washington? In New York it’s pretty dark.

    Posted by tim maguire on 2006 01 27 at 12:41 PM • permalink

  3. Daylight savings time or standard?

    Posted by bc on 2006 01 27 at 12:48 PM • permalink

  4. I wonder if I will have my student loan paid off in 12 billion years.

    Posted by ushie on 2006 01 27 at 12:51 PM • permalink

  5. Our time might be even shorter than that. Every part of the universe is rapidly moving away from us, and it may not be long before the distance between habitable planets, or even stars, is just far too great to cross using all the energy remaining in our solar system.

    Posted by Tatterdemalian on 2006 01 27 at 01:08 PM • permalink

  6. oh no, only 7.5 billion years to go & we haven’t built the escape ship yet. somebody hand some tinfoil & a spanner quick.  perhaps we can complete the hyperhoverdrive by christmas.  anyone seen those magnets & the flymo?

    Posted by KK on 2006 01 27 at 01:10 PM • permalink

  7. and crank up the aircon.  if the earth is going to be a burned out cinder anyway, bugger kyoto

    Posted by KK on 2006 01 27 at 01:12 PM • permalink

  8. I guess I can sleep in and skip that 9:00 AM meeting then. . . .

    Posted by Conrad on 2006 01 27 at 01:27 PM • permalink

  9. I’m melllllting!  I’m melllllting!

    Posted by RebeccaH on 2006 01 27 at 02:22 PM • permalink

  10. Hmmmm.

    “astrobiologist”?

    WTF is an “astrobiologist”?  Have they actually found life in space or another planet?  Well.  NO.  So WTF are these two dweebs supposedly studying with such detail that they could possibly be called “astrobiologist”?

    Posted by memomachine on 2006 01 27 at 02:53 PM • permalink

  11. Women and minorities hardest hit.

    Posted by andycanuck on 2006 01 27 at 03:01 PM • permalink

  12. As I’m driven into the ocean by the scorching heat of the numbing ice ages I’ll want to know whom to blame: Bush or the Jews?

    Posted by Paul Zrimsek on 2006 01 27 at 03:09 PM • permalink

  13. Goerge W. Bushitlerburtonplasticturkeypretzchoking BASTARD!!!!! NOW WE’RE ALL GONNA DIE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!dcvhbDncb45vrfszx

    Whoa, sorry; Daily Kos took over my keyboard for a sec.

    Posted by Monroe Doctrine on 2006 01 27 at 03:16 PM • permalink

  14. At noon – after 12 billion years – the ever-expanding sun, transformed into a red giant, will engulf the planet, melting away any evidence it ever existed and sending molecules and atoms that once were Earth floating off into space…

    ...as an observing alien notes, “It’s all Bush’s fault.”

    Posted by Dave S. on 2006 01 27 at 03:16 PM • permalink

  15. This reminds me of an old joke.

    Guy like this makes a speech like this and someone in the back of the room stands up in a panic and says, “Excuse me, did you say 12 million years???”

    The speaker says, “No, no, 12 BILLION.”

    Phew!  What a relief!

    Posted by sarah rolph on 2006 01 27 at 03:33 PM • permalink

  16. Good one, Sarah. (And I’d never heard that one before.)

    Posted by andycanuck on 2006 01 27 at 04:10 PM • permalink

  17. Apres moi ...

    Posted by Achillea on 2006 01 27 at 04:18 PM • permalink

  18. More like astrobiohypothesist. Scientists deal in measurable facts, not metanarratives.

    Posted by Nathan on 2006 01 27 at 07:46 PM • permalink

  19. Better sign that Kyoto Protocol.

    You betcha. That Kyoto clock at junkscience.com has Kyoto reducing temperatures by a whopping 0.0015 degrees Celsius until 2050. If we extrapolate that out 7.5 billion years until the engulfing of Earth by the Sun-turned-Red-Giant alleged happens, we find that Kyoto will have reduced temperatures by approximately 250,000 degrees, easily enabling us to survive this minor cosmic incident.

    Posted by PW on 2006 01 27 at 08:30 PM • permalink

  20. I’m watching this situation closely.  If it starts to warm up dramatically around here, come May or June, it will doubtless be a bad sign…

    Posted by richard mcenroe on 2006 01 27 at 09:01 PM • permalink

  21. The Wheel of Time junkies are doomed.  Jordan shows no signs of being able to wrap things up by then.

    Posted by Achillea on 2006 01 27 at 10:07 PM • permalink

  22. Hey, come on guys, stop the frivolity. This is serious.  The world’s going to end!

    Does anyone have Flannery’s phone number so we can put these groups together to coordinate an earth rescue plan?

    Posted by Wand on 2006 01 27 at 10:34 PM • permalink

  23. The Wheel of Time junkies are doomed.  Jordan shows no signs of being able to wrap things up by then.

    Oh god, I cackled out loud at that one. LOL.

    No, I don’t have any friends who are totally into the inexplicably still-published Jordan, why do you ask? (Rinses brain an extra five minutes.)

    Posted by Andrea Harris, Administrator on 2006 01 27 at 10:55 PM • permalink

  24. The Wheel of Time junkies are doomed.  Jordan shows no signs of being able to wrap things up by then.

    I saw book 11 at the book store recently, and found myself wondering if he managed to wrap up any plot points in it.

    Posted by Rob Crawford on 2006 01 27 at 11:30 PM • permalink

  25. Ah! That explains why some of Europe is in deep freeze and why in January I am wearing a sweater instead of expiring in front of my air conditioner.
    Is that climate warming?

    Posted by waussie on 2006 01 28 at 12:13 AM • permalink

  26. Rob Crawford — I understand Stephen Donaldson and the ghost of Tolkien both visited Jordan and said, “For god’s sake, can’t you pick it up a LITTLE bit…?”

    And an astrobiologist is what you stuff in the capsule when you run out of dogs and monkeys…

    Posted by richard mcenroe on 2006 01 28 at 12:20 AM • permalink

  27. Who is Jordan?

    Posted by RebeccaH on 2006 01 28 at 12:30 AM • permalink

  28. Who is Jordan?

    Robert Jordan, author of a fantasy trilogy that currently numbers almost a dozen books.

    Posted by Achillea on 2006 01 28 at 02:34 AM • permalink

  29. Wow - only another half-billion years to go before humans need to go space-faring. If we aren’t doing Star Trek-like space travel by then, we *deserve* to become extinct.

    Posted by Zhang Fei on 2006 01 28 at 05:12 AM • permalink

  30. MEMO
    To:  Richard McEnroe, Master Member Tier V
    cc:  Inner Circle
    bcc: Space Team members
    Subject:  Space Phase of Master Plan

    You demanded in a fairly harsh manner requested an update as to our organization’s plan of space exploitation.

    As you know, the neocons currently have the space spation, equipped with laser cannons.  (note to Dave S:  when are you bringing the photon torpedo upgrade, Karl is browbeating me over that).

    We also have the Alpha I moonbase.  A Walmart has recently been added, although we regret it was not a Superstore version.  We hope to change that in the next plan.

    The terraforming of Mars is on track.  Global warming there is proceeding nicely.  The oxygen levels are increasing a bit ahead of schedule.

    We are also staying on budget.  The addition of billions from the “Iraq invasion budget” (snicker, snicker) is helping a great deal.  It was a brilliant idea of Karl to trump up an invasion as a means to fund the space phase of the neocon conquest.

    So, all in all, everything is working according to plan.  Commendations should be issued to:  Stoop Davy Dave, Michael Lonie, PW, blogstrop, Dave S, wronwright.

    Posted by wronwright on 2006 01 28 at 11:30 AM • permalink

  31. wronwright — you were in charge of rigging the lunar nuclear waste dump to detonate and drive the moon out of the solar system when the time came.  Where is the earth-shattering kaboom?  There was supposed to be an earth-shattering kaboom…

    Posted by richard mcenroe on 2006 01 28 at 09:55 PM • permalink

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