It’s not the end of the world, and they know it.
Bombarded by anxious calls about whether the world will end Dec. 21, NASA administrators have set up a website to bring America back to its senses.
Whereas the space agency typically receives around 90 calls per day on a variety of topics, NASA has been fielding 200 to 300 inquiries of late dealing with this rumor.
In part, the uptick of concern comes from the belief that Friday is the last day on the Mayan calendar, a rumor that has left many people looking for answers.
"Who's the first agency you would call?" NASA spokesman Dwayne Brown told the Los Angeles Times. "You're going to call NASA."
With call volumes tapping resources, NASA has dedicated a portion of its website to “frequently asked questions” regarding the end of the world, and the first one gets right to the point.
“Are there any threats to the Earth in 2012? Many Internet websites say the world will end in December 2012.”
“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,” NASA states.
Though they were noted astronomers of their day, however, NASA says that far too much has been made of what appears to be the end of the Mayan calendar.
“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 December 21, 2012,” the webpage, which has drawn 4.6 million views, states. “This date is the end of the Mayan long-count period but then -- just as your calendar begins again on January 1 -- another long-count period begins for the Mayan calendar.”
The site goes on to bust a number of other myths about the end of the world, such as the fear of a total blackout caused by the alignment of the universe, anxiety over the possibility of a sudden reversal of the north and south poles, and the belief of an imminent collision between Earth and a wayward planet called Nibiru.
Not to worry, says NASA, none of those scenarios has any scientific merit.
"We're doing all that we can do to let the world know that as far as NASA and science goes, Dec. 21 will be another day," Brown told the Times.
As yet, however, there’s nothing on the agency’s website about Bigfoot or the Loch Ness Monster. (nydailynews.com)
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