Doomsday predictions may be inaccurate

Doomsday predictions are not new. Just ask Nostradamus. Well, since he has been dead for a little while, that might be a little difficult. Just ask Google, then.

According to the latest Doomsday predictions, Friday marks the end.

These predictions have become so widespread that NASA has gotten into the fray, presumably to put some minds at ease.

NASA scientists address some of the dominant rumors in a straight-forward question-and-answer section at NASA.gov.

According to NASA, Friday’s Doomsday prediction began with a story about a planet called Nibiru that was supposedly discovered by the Sumerians. This planet was apparently on a collision course with Earth.

“This catastrophe was initially predicted for May 2003, but when nothing happened the doomsday date was moved forward to December 2012 and linked to the end of one of the cycles in the ancient Mayan calendar at the winter solstice in 2012,” according to NASA.gov.

Is the Mayan calendar ending? Yes and no, according to scientists.

“Just as the calendar you have on your kitchen wall does not cease to exist after December 31, the Mayan calendar does not cease to exist on Dec. 21, 2012. This date is the end of the Mayan long-count period but then – just as your calendar begins again on Jan. 1 – another long-count period begins for the Mayan calendar,” according to NASA.gov.

The NASA scientists point out that if a planet were about to collide with earth, astronomers would have been tracking it for about a decade – and it would be hard to miss in the sky.

As for a reversal of the earth’s magnetic poles causing the rotation of the earth to also reverse, scientists debunk that also.

“A reversal in the rotation of earth is impossible,” according to the site.

While the scientists concede that a magnetic reversal does happen – about every 400,000 years – they also say there is no evidence it harms life on earth. And they also don’t expect another reversal for at least a few millennia.

“The world will not end in 2012. Our planet has been getting along just fine for more than 4 billion years, and credible scientists worldwide know of no threat associated with 2012,” according to NASA.gov.

Looks like you just may need that retirement account.