A countdown is a sequence of counting backward to indicate the seconds, days, or other time units remaining before an event occurs or a deadline expires. Typical events for which a countdown is used include the launch of a rocket or spacecraft, the detonation of a bomb, the start of a race, and the start of the New Year. Countdown was first used by the 1929 German science fiction movie Die Frau im Mond by Fritz Lang to increase the drama of the launch sequence of the story's lunar rocket. - Source: Wikipedia