earth's rotation Archives

The Earth’s rotation, the invisible clockwork that dictates the rhythm of our days and nights, is gradually slowing down. While this change is imperceptible in our daily lives, it has profound implications over geological time scales.

The Gradual Slowdown of Earth’s Rotation

Earth’s rotation is not as constant as it might seem. It is gradually slowing down at an average rate of about 1.7 milliseconds per century. This deceleration is primarily due to the gravitational interactions between the Earth and the Moon, a phenomenon known as tidal friction. As the Moon orbits the Earth, its gravitational pull causes the oceans to bulge outwards.

The Earth rotates beneath these bulges, and since the bulges are slightly ahead due to the Moon’s pull, there’s a constant transfer of energy from the Earth to the Moon. This transfer slows its rotation and causes the Moon to move slightly further away from us each year.

Tidal Friction and Its Effects

Tidal friction’s effects extend beyond just slowing down our planet’s spin. It also contributes to the lengthening of the day. Over the past century, the length of a day has increased by about 1.4 milliseconds. While this might not seem like much, it accumulates over millions of years, significantly altering the Earth’s natural rhythms. This gradual change has implications for timekeeping, requiring periodic adjustments like leap seconds to keep our clocks in sync with Earth’s rotation.

Geological and Biological Impacts of the Earth’s Rotation

The slowing rotation also has potential impacts on Earth’s geology and biology. For instance, a longer day can affect the patterns of weather and climate by altering the dynamics of the atmosphere. Moreover, many organisms, from tiny plankton to large mammals, have biological rhythms tied to the cycle of day and night. Changes in the length of the day could potentially affect these rhythms, although such effects would unfold over timescales far beyond human lifespans.

Looking to the Future

As Earth’s rotation continues to slow, future generations might experience longer days, although these changes will be gradual and spread over thousands to millions of years. The precise impacts of this deceleration on our planet’s geology, climate, and ecosystems remain areas of active research. Understanding these processes not only sheds light on the dynamic nature of our planet but also on the intricate interconnections between celestial mechanics and life on Earth.

In essence, the slowing of Earth’s rotation is a subtle yet constant reminder of the dynamic and ever-changing nature of our planet. It highlights the complex interplay between celestial bodies and the profound impacts these interactions can have on the Earth’s environment and its inhabitants over geological time.

— WTF fun facts

Source: “Ancient eclipses show Earth’s rotation is slowing” — Science

In need of a revolution

Now, this is disturbing in many ways. However, some people don’t do well when quizzed on the spot. We’d like to think that it’s more of a misunderstanding than a quarter of Americans truly believing that the Earth is the center of the solar system.

Spoiler alert: the Earth revolves around the sun.

Maybe we should all talk to elementary school students taking science classes more often.

Parsing data on the earth’s revolution

Here’s how the survey was done: People were asked a (theoretically simple) question: “Does the Earth go around the Sun, or does the Sun go around the Earth.”

Only 26% answered incorrectly.

According to NPR (cited below): “In the same survey, just 39 percent answered correctly (true) that ‘The universe began with a huge explosion’ and only 48 percent said ‘Human beings, as we know them today, developed from earlier species of animals.’ Just over half understood that antibiotics are not effective against viruses.”

It’s a bit of an embarrassing science deficit. In fact, that last misunderstanding (about antibiotics) has been downright dangerous.

However, NPR goes on…“As alarming as some of those deficits in science knowledge might appear, Americans fared better on several of the questions than similar, but older surveys of their Chinese and European counterparts. Only 66 percent of people in a 2005 European Union poll answered the basic astronomy question correctly.”

But let’s not celebrate too soon because “both China and the EU fared significantly better (66 percent and 70 percent, respectively) on the question about human evolution.” — WTF fun facts

Source: “1 In 4 Americans Thinks The Sun Goes Around The Earth, Survey Says” — NPR

WTF Fun Fact 13691 – The Earth’s Rotation is Slowing