Depending on who or what you believe in, the end of the world may occur anytime from 2020 to 2280. Jeane Dixon claimed the end would come seven years from now, though she did previously say that the world would end on February 4, 1962. F. Kenton Beshore said Rapture would occur in 2021. A noted Sunni Muslim theologian, Said Nursi, pegs 2129 as the date of reckoning. Orthodox Jews say it will be in 2240. A researcher of the Quran Code, Rashad Khalifa, says it would happen in 2280.

When the date finally comes, how will the world end? Will there be four horsemen riding into view as mentioned in the last book of the Bible’s New Testament? Here now is a list of the top 10 most feared apocalyptic events.

10. Aliens to Rule the Earth

We have seen it countless times in the movies. Back in the 50's, a radio show even invited widespread panic because of an alien attack. Listeners then were not that sophisticated enough to know when something is fictional. Up to now, not a single alien has been verified to exist, regardless of what they say had happened in Roswell. Still, when they do come, will they zap all the world’s landmarks with a single beam of their laser?

9. Black Holes Eating Up the Universe

There must be hundreds of black holes roaming the galaxy. The scary part is that when one gets too near our planet, it will certainly gobble up everything, leaving all of us in limbo. Then again, the nearest black hole is around 10 trillion kilometers away. Even if they finally get near, black holes will probably take 100 hours just to eat up a single atomic particle.

8. Zombies – The Walking Dead

It has already been proven that there are brain-controlling parasites capable of turning ants into zombies. Yes, tiny ants which are practically walking dead. While there are no germs known to man that are powerful enough to turn people into zombies, who knows if that scenario would happen in the future? Maybe, that’s why we are so hooked on zombie movies and stories. Brad Pitt can then reprise his role in World War Z and find a way to fight off these creatures.

7. Gamma Ray Bursts

This sounds just like the stuff nerds and geeks come up with when writing stories for their comic books. Gamma ray bursts are the most powerful explosions known. Just to put it in perspective, the sun will take 10 billion years to consume all its energy. Gamma ray bursts can consume the same amount in a matter of one minute. A burst from one that is 8,000 light years away can actually cause life on Earth to cease.

6. Robots Take Over

Okay, this may sound eerily like The Terminator series of movies. Man keeps upping the ante in the development of more powerful robots and computers that pretty soon, these robots get to develop their own intelligence and free themselves from the control of man. Worse, they only got the intelligence part, not the emotions and empathy portions. We can just wait for John Connor to send back a reprogrammed robot who would serve as our ally to help destroy the mechanical rulers. It will look like Arnold Schwarzenegger, and it will one day rule an important state in North America.

5. Solar Eruptions

While the sun is an important part of our lives, it can actually cost a lot of damage to the technology that we have become reliant on. A solar eruption can affect power grids and communication lines. Consider that in 1859, a solar storm caused extensive fires in Europe and North America, while shorting out telegraph wires and lighting up the earth’s poles bright enough for a person to read comfortably. That was in 1859, when the world was not even that interconnected yet. These days, with a much more developed electrical and communication equipment and infrastructure, a similar solar storm can bring the world to a stop, with some experts estimating damage to reach $2 trillion.

4. Super Volcano Eruption

We thought that the eruption of Krakatoa and St. Helens could not get any worse, but then, Mt. Pinatubo happened in 1991. That eruption caused climates and weather patterns to change. In 2010, Mt. Eyjafjallajokull in Finland erupted, causing plane flights and routes to be disrupted. These volcanoes were not that popular before they erupted. Meaning that there is a real chance that a previously unheard of super volcano may suddenly come alive that will completely change the way we live.

3. Asteroids and Comets Hitting the Earth

This one is a relatively more likely event to happen. As recently as about 100 years ago, a huge swath of Siberia was mysteriously leveled in what some experts believe to have been caused by a small asteroid hitting the area. Cosmic particles hitting the planet also caused the extinction of dinosaurs. When that happens, you can just hope that the crew of Bruce Willis and Ben Affleck from the movie Armageddon will still be around to save the day.

2. Nuclear War

During the Cold War, the entire world was on alert because of the rivalry of the two superpowers. For some reason, their huge arsenal of nuclear weapons that assured destruction on both sides was able to keep the peace. Now that the Soviet Union has been dismantled, the threat still remains because of rogue states and terrorists who may get the weapon in their hand.

1. Infections and Diseases

During the medieval period in the 14^th century, a plague devastated the world. Called Black Death, it killed almost 50 percent of the population in all the areas that it affected. Every so often these days, we hear of new diseases spreading, from dengue, AIDS, SARS, FMD, swine flu, bird flu and Ebola. Viruses are also mutating, making them resistant to even the strongest drugs. When we finally run out of ideas of how to contain these killer diseases, then the world’s end may be nearing.