This archive report was first published on 16 June 2020.
June 21, 2020, marks a significant day for Liverpool fans, as it could be the day their team wins the Premier League title. However, a conspiracy theory circulating online suggests that the world might end on the same day.
According to the theory, the Julian Calendar claims that we are technically in 2012. A scientist, Paolo Tagaloguin, explained in a series of tweets that the number of days lost in a year due to the shift into the Gregorian Calendar is 11 days. For 268 years using the Gregorian Calendar (1752-2020) times 11 days = 2,948 days. 2,948 days / 365 days (per year) = 8 years.
However, NASA has trashed any reports of an apocalypse, saying there was no scientific means to back the claims. In a statement, NASA said, "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 - hence the predicted doomsday date of December 21, 2012. For any claims of disaster or dramatic changes in 2012, where is the science? Where is the evidence?"
Despite the conspiracy theory, Liverpool fans remain hopeful that their team will win the title. The Reds have been waiting for 30 years to win the Premier League title and are currently only two wins away from achieving this goal.
With the Premier League season having returned, Liverpool is still facing a strange prospect of failing to enjoy their title triumph once again, if the conspiracy theory is anything to go by.
