Demographics, Population | featured news

It took only a dozen years for humanity to add another billion people to the planet, reaching the milestone of 7 billion Monday — give or take a few months. Demographers at the United Nations Population Division set Oct. 31, 2011, as the "symbolic" date for hitting 7 billion, while acknowledging that it's impossible to know for sure the specific time or day. Using slightly different calculations, the U.S. Census Bureau estimates the 7-billion threshold will not be reached until March.

U.S. Census Bureau demographic data to be released Thursday are expected to show that the Hispanic population of the United States has reached a new milestone, topping 50 million people, demographers told CNN.

Minorities now make up about 35% of the country's population, and about 57% of the population in California. Meanwhile, the white population continues to decline.

Across the nation, the number of minorities continues to rise and the white population continues to decline, according to U.S.