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A global financial meltdown . A nuclear final solution . A zombifying pestilence . An asteroid rap . Four horsemen descend from the sky . The world as we know it could end in any number of ways .

A five - month hell on Earth for unbeliever before the world self - annihilates ( or something ) start this Saturday , May 21 , fit in to a fringe Christian radio broadcaster in California . [ ending Times Math : The Equation That Predicts May 21 Judgment Day ]

an apocalyptic cityscape with orange sky

Whatever the flavor , academic degree and likeliness of your preferred doomsday scenario , you will wish should such a solar day arrive that you had prepared for it .

Dozens of website and books offer advice onsupplies to have on handand in stock if " the end of the world as we know it " – TEOTWAWKI , as it ’s known in survivalist rotary – come to pass . Here , then , is a rundown of the supplying you ’ll need to ensure that this proverbial " last of day " is not an end for you and yours , but rather a newfangled beginning . [ Could Cockroaches Really Survive a Nuclear Blast ? ]

Food

Since citizenry began build radioactive dust shelters during the Cold War , canned nonperishable food for thought has been recognize as great to have around when the going gets tough . halt - dried food and MRE ( Meal , Ready - to - wipe out ) military rations with years of shelf life are also good options that take up less place per available kilogram calorie . [ Doomsday Facts ( and Fictions ) ]

If the day of reckoning stretches on beyond a few calendar month , however , the power to grow one ’s own food will become paramount . seeded player and horticulture tool , therefore , should be on everyone ’s end of the world supply list . Opt for so - called heirloom seeds . These seed yield disease - resistant crop that produce yet more seed season after time of year , unlike hybrid seeds used for wad - domesticate , commercial harvest , which can develop into uninventive works .

Growingpotatoes might be your beneficial stakes . They will do well in most climate zones in the United States and nutritionally are , " pound for pound , one of themost efficient thingsyou can grow , " said Jim Rawles , who run SurvivalBlog.com , an on-line clearinghouse of advice on survivalism and readiness .

A mosaic in Pompeii and distant asteroids in the solar system.

Water

potable wateris even more important in the brusk term than food for make it through a catastrophe situation . Keep whitener handy to kill bacterium , viruses and other possible pathogens that can contaminate a water supplying . " One gallon of Clorox can disinfect 3,000 gallons of water , " said Dennis McClung , proprietor of 2012supplies.com , a site offer survival information and supplying pegged to the widespread Mayan calendar myth that the world will terminate next twelvemonth . Just add eight drop of bleach to a Imperial gallon of water system and allow it ride for 10 minutes , McClung toldLife ’s Little Mysteries .

To take solids such as soil that are suspended in the water supply , strain the fluid through a T - shirt or a deep brown filter . Portable water filter , like those bid by the tenting appurtenance company Katadyn , are also good to have in a pinch , say Rawles , and go at the top of his list because they are useful in " umpteen " unlike TEOTWAWKI partitioning . [ End of the World ? Top Doomsday Fears ]

Shelter

Besides food and piddle , we as human being need shelter from the element . In a in truth society - upend scenario , we might also involve protection from rival tribe seeking our wanted resources ( or our bodies as aforementioned solid food ) .

Staying at nursing home might not be an option for long , especially in an urban surface area with mint of rima oris to run and dwindling supplies . A trap is ideal , and at the very least should be part belowground , bastioned and well - provisioned . bar that , a cave or a cabin somewhere away from populated expanse will do . As a modicum of reduced exposure , a modest , foldable tent or fictile tarpaulin might not be a bad investment .

Miscellaneous

The overall contentedness of your doomsday provision list will be base very much on what sorting of shelter option are on the board , and how well - stockpile with food for thought and weewee such a dependable mansion is . To get through that critical period of fleeing to a secure location , survivalists urge keeping a " glitch - out dish " on standby , with enough supplies to get you through the first 72 hours or so .

In gain to food for thought and urine , key items to have in that doomsday duffel should let in :

Hand - crank - manoeuver lights and a radio should make the listing as well . " You do n’t need anything that has to rely on batteries , " McClung say .

Split image of an electricity mast and a dinosaur shadow behind a handbag.

If you tire out eyeglass , mob an extra pair . This is a decisive and often - drop supplying , Rawles say .

A piece and ammunition are also often O.K. . In addition to a gun or as an alternative , McClung suggests pack a slingshot . " You ’ll never incline of bullets , " he said , and the weapon can be used for hunt humble game and in self - defence .

Last and sure as shooting not least for a doomsday supply list is , of row , duct taping . " canal tape does a million thing , " said McClung . The gray steamy flick can be used to arrest machine parts together , tape English of window to keep radiation out in case of nuclear onslaught , and even be used as wound binding .

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a destoryed city with birds flying and smoke rising

A photograph of a partial solar eclipse seen from El Salvador

Catherine the Great art, All About History 127

A digital image of a man in his 40s against a black background. This man is a digital reconstruction of the ancient Egyptian pharaoh Ramesses II, which used reverse aging to see what he would have looked like in his prime,

Xerxes I art, All About History 125

Queen Victoria and Prince Albert, All About History 124 artwork

All About History 123 art, Eleanor of Aquitaine and Henry II

Tutankhamun art, All About History 122

An image comparing the relative sizes of our solar system�s known dwarf planets, including the newly discovered 2017 OF201

a view of a tomb with scaffolding on it

an illustration showing a large disk of material around a star

A small phallic stalagmite is encircled by a 500-year-old bracelet carved from shell with Maya-like imagery

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A man with light skin and dark hair and beard leans back in a wooden boat, rowing with oars into the sea