This is big, SEJ friends, and if you landed on this page, you are now searching for the next big trend of the Internet: 12/12/12. This is the last time in your life to be part (and see) a repetitive date, a big thing for promoters of the Apocalypse, the boogieman in the closet… and hopefully, not our demise.
12/12/12 – and what are you searching for? The end of the world? We’ve probably ditched one, or pray to ditch the next. A three miles long 4179 Toutatis asteroid is expected to pass within 4 million miles of Earth tonight – a close shave according to Examiner reporter Dennis Bodzash, but not really. The asteroid poses no threat to Earth. Still if you have a top-notch telescope, you are in for the show of a lifetime. And one other celestial show, a bright meteor shower, the Geminids, can be seen December 12, but will peak on Thursday, December 13.
We already ditched a close encounter with another (smaller) asteroid this morning. XE54 passed just 140,000 miles of Earth today, enough to make you believe that all the signs for the predicted December 21, 2012 doomsday align. But if you are searching for signs in the Mayan calendar, NASA tells that 12-21-2012 is just another day.
Whatever you are searching for, you cannot escape the obvious: 12/12/12 will haunt you wherever you go, on all social networks, and all search engines. It is already going strong on Twitter, approaching World Twitter Trend status, and Facebook users are going nuts sharing the likes of:
Maybe you are not worried about Toutatis, but you are backing up your PC? That’s if you believe predictions of a Y2K-style internet and computer breakdown that come from Australia.
Don’t search for a wedding venue though, they are all booked solid, from Hong Kong and Singapore, all the way to Las Vegas and beyond.
Entertainment and good causes? Tickets to the Superstorm Sandy benefit concert featuring Jon Bon Jovi, Bruce Springsteen, Paul McCartney, Rolling Stones and others, scheduled for 12/12/12 are sold out. The event is expected to reach 2 billion people worldwide. Obviously, these people don’t believe in Doomsday.
Speaking of which, perhaps you will be searching for other Anti-Doomsday Day events? This, by the Astronomical Society of the Pacific, is a good start.
And while some will search for information, others will act as spectators, reading and analyzing trends and behaviors. We will not be giving you a 12/12/12 report tomorrow – the news team is busy searching for Christmas presents. Obviously, SEJ believes in life as we know it after December 12, 2012 and even after December 21/2012. Happy searching and may 12/12/12 be your lucky charm, whatever you choose to do tomorrow.