Since 2020, the rotation of the Earth – a movement in which the planet turns around in its own axis – has been accelerating, and This can make days last less than traditional 24 hours. According to experts, this reduction can be recorded on one of these dates:
- July 9;
- July 22;
- August 5.
Researcher Graham Jones, astrophysicist and scientific communicator, studies the phenomenon and explains that 24 hours have 86,400 seconds, and the normal change in the earth’s rotation movement is only 1 millisecond – possible variations to be analyzed only through atomic watches.
However, on July 5, 2024 the day had 1.66 millisecond. The expected is that in some of the three days mentioned above, the difference is even greater.
What is causing acceleration in the rotation of the planet?
It is not yet known what is causing the fact. However, Graham Jones analyzes that “Long -term variations at Earth’s speed of rotation are affected by a long list of factors, which includes the complex movement of the nucleus, the oceans and the atmosphere of the earth”.
The dates scheduled for this year coincide with the times when the moon orbit is at its point farther from the Ecuador line. After all, the movement of the planet on its own axis tends to be faster when the natural satellite of the Earth is extremely north or south of the equatorial line.
In the future, will the days have no more twenty -four hours?
As scientists do not know the reason for acceleration, there is no proof of this. What they believe is that “if this trend continues, in about 50 billion years, Earth’s rotation will synchronize with the moon orbit and there will be no tides (goodbye, surfing), and we will always see the same side of the moon, making it visible only in half of the planet,” according to the Uniórayo website.
For now, the variation is minimal – 86,400 seconds less 1.66 millisecond. To get an idea, The so -called “shorter day in history” will be reduced at a smaller interval than a blink.
