From the sinking of the Titanic to the explosion of the atomic bomb: predictions that came true

Humanity has always sought to know the future. Some have attempted this through divine prophecies, while others have relied on scientific hypotheses and observations. Interestingly, some people seem to have foretold future events with surprising accuracy. This article highlights some of the most famous and controversial predictions in history, including the Titanic disaster, the Great Fire of London following the plague, a writer who predicted his own death, the creation of the atomic bomb, and the election of Donald Trump as president.

Titanic disaster

When the Titanic sank in 1912 while en route to New York, an old, little-known story resurfaced. It was a novella titled "Futility, or the Wreck of the Titan", written in 1898 by the American author Morgan Robertson. What did the book have in common with the real-life tragedy?

The truth is, there were eerie similarities between Robertson’s fictional account and the events that unfolded 14 years later. For example, CBC highlighted several parallels:

In Robertson’s story, the ocean liner *Titan* sailed across the North Atlantic, just like the *Titanic*. Both ships, nearly identical in size, were described as “unsinkable.” They each carried far too few lifeboats. Both struck an iceberg at night, in April, and at nearly the same speed. For these reasons, the book is considered one of the most uncanny predictions of the future. However, Titanic expert Paul Heyer questioned the idea that it was truly prophetic:

“Robertson was an experienced sailor. He merely suspected that one of these massive ships might eventually hit an iceberg.”

"The London fire"

The summer of 1666 was unusually dry in London. A fire that began in a bakery quickly spread throughout the city. According to historical accounts, the disaster destroyed 80 percent of London’s buildings in just five days. The remarkable twist is that this tragedy had been predicted a century earlier by the famous French seer Nostradamus.

In his 1555 book "Les Prophéties" (Prophecies), he wrote the following quatrain:

“The blood of justice will not be enough in London,
And in 66 it will be destroyed by fire:
The ancient Bekajon will fall from its height,
And many of those who believe in the same will perish.”

When the fire consumed the city, Londoners had not yet fully recovered from the Black Death of 1665. Many interpretations suggest that the “blood of justice” in the poem refers to the millions of rats that spread the plague. Ironically, the fire helped eradicate them.

The writer who predicted his own death

Mark Twain’s prediction of his own death is considered one of the most striking coincidences in history. Born in Florida, Missouri, on November 30, 1835—when Halley’s Comet was passing close to Earth—Twain lived for 75 years and died precisely when the celestial body returned.

His biographer, Albert Bigelow Payne, recalled a conversation in which Twain said:

“I came in with Halley’s Comet in 1835. It is coming again, and I expect to go with it. If it doesn’t, it will be the greatest disappointment of my life.”

A year later, on April 21, 1910—the day of the comet’s return—Twain died of a heart attack. NASA’s Johnson Space Center has also confirmed this timing.

Atomic bomb

H.G. Wells was a remarkable visionary who imagined everything from satellite television to airplanes and even the concept of a global internet. One of his most astonishing predictions was the atomic bomb.

A master of science fiction, Wells coined the term decades before nuclear weapons were used against Japan. His 1914 novel "The World Set Free" depicted nuclear explosions in a global war. Although he lacked detailed knowledge of nuclear chain reactions, he described long-lasting, radioactive, vapor-producing grenades. He even wrote about bombs being dropped from airplanes on crowded cities—eerily similar to what happened in Hiroshima and Nagasaki in August 1945.

According to the BBC, in 1933, Hungarian physicist Leo Szilard, inspired by Wells’s book, discovered the principle of the nuclear chain reaction. Meanwhile, German scientists studying uranium fission learned that splitting the nucleus with neutrons released enormous amounts of energy. When Germany stopped exporting uranium, Szilard consulted with Albert Einstein and co-authored a letter to U.S. President Franklin Delano Roosevelt, warning of the potential threat. This letter—later known as the “Einstein-Szilard letter”—paved the way for the creation, testing, and eventual detonation of the first nuclear bombs.

Donald Trump becomes president

First broadcast in 1989, "The Simpsons" has remained popular for decades. Beyond its sharp satire, the show has become known for seemingly predicting future events, reflecting social and political realities through the lens of one animated family. Donald Trump’s 2016 presidency is one of the many predictions that have unexpectedly come true on "The Simpsons". In the episode "Bart to the Future", the family visits a casino where young Bart meets a fortune teller who shows him a vision of his life 30 years ahead. In the future, Bart is a failed musician, while his sister Lisa becomes President of the United States and chairs a cabinet meeting in the White House. During her speech, Lisa says:

“President Trump inherited a huge budget deficit.”

This single line has been widely interpreted as a prediction of businessman Donald Trump’s presidency. There are many other "Simpsons" episodes that have similarly foreshadowed real-life events, as discussed in earlier analyses.

The striking accuracy of such predictions makes us question the limits of human perception and the ability to foresee future events. Morgan Robertson’s story of the “Titan” or Wells’s imaginative vision of nuclear weapons can be explained by keen observation and an understanding of technological progress. At the same time, random or satirical forecasts—like those found in "The Simpsons"—highlight the unpredictability of cultural and political developments.

It is worth noting that "The Simpsons" has been written by some of the most insightful political and philosophical satirists of their time, which may explain the show’s ability to mirror real-world trends. To draw meaningful conclusions from these predictions, it is essential to analyze them deeply and compare them with historical and scientific contexts. Otherwise, they remain nothing more than myths or legends.