In the future, the Earth will rotate faster. What does this threaten?

Have you ever wondered what would happenif our planet starts spinning faster? If not, catch a spoiler - nothing good. Recently, scientists have come to the conclusion that as a result of climate change, the Earth will begin to spin faster. According to experts, as the planet heats up, its mass will be redistributed, which will cause the planet to rotate faster and create many problems. According to experts, by 2200 the day will be as much as 0.12 milliseconds faster. But what does this threaten?

Why can the rotation speed of our planet change in the future?

At what speed does the earth rotate?

First, let’s understand that fearing that the planetsuddenly starts spinning faster, not worth it. At least, if this happens, then not in our lifetime. Nevertheless, the question is quite interesting, given the statements of experts on the impact of climate change on the Earth's rotation speed. So, let's talk about how fast the world rotates. Our planet rotates around its axis with a period of one stellar day from west to east. The most interesting thing in this whole story is that you and I are on Earth, but we don’t feel its rotation. This situation is reminiscent of an airplane flight - we are in the cockpit, but we don’t feel movement at all.

Our planet makes one revolution around its axisin 24 hours. However, do not forget about the circumference of the Earth, which equals 40,075 km at the equator. This means that any object that is at the equator rotates at a speed of approximately equal to 1674 km per hour. But at the North Pole (90 degrees north latitude) and the South Pole (90 degrees south latitude) the Earth's rotation speed is almost zero, since the speed of rotation of the poles is quite small. Thus, in order to calculate the speed of rotation of the planet for the place where you are right now, you need to multiply the cosine of latitude by the speed of rotation of the Earth at the equator (1674 km per hour).

So our planet looks from space

Now let's imagine that the rotation speedThe planet accelerated by one and a half kilometers per hour. Such a change, although it may seem insignificant, can lead to the most unpleasant consequences. One of these consequences is a constant jetlag, when the days become shorter, and the internal clock of the body cannot be rebuilt. If the Earth rotates 200 km per hour faster, the day on the planet will last 22 hours instead of 24. Hurricanes, sea level rise near the equator and the earthquake - all these events will not take long if the planet suddenly starts spinning faster. But what does climate change have to do with it?

How does temperature affect the speed of rotation of the earth?

Scientists claim that the redistribution of mass byClimate change will cause our planet to rotate faster around the globe. If climate change accelerates, the situation will worsen. The increased level of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere heats the globe, as a result, polar ice caps are melting. Melting glaciers will cause a rise in sea level, thus the mass redistribution will occur. To better understand the situation, Felix Landerer of the Institute of Meteorology. Max Planck in Hamburg, Germany, suggests introducing a skater who is spinning. If the skater extends her arms, then her rotation will slow down, and if she brings her arms closer to her body, she will accelerate. By this analogy, the Earth, as it were, “draws its hands” to the waist - or the equator, which will make it rotate faster.

By the way, on our channel in Yandex.Zen you will find even more information about research in the field of climate change.

Scientists predict that by 2200the day will be 0.12 milliseconds faster. Although this may seem insignificant, over the course of the year this change could exacerbate global warming. The fact is that faster rotation will give more energy to cyclones and hurricanes, which are already becoming stronger. Moreover, it is possible that the transfer of ocean and air currents will be less able to move from equatorial to polar regions, making high latitudes much colder, and the tropics even hotter.

Climate change can bring humanity a sea of ​​problems

In general, climate change does not threatenonly waves of extreme heat, but also a change in the speed of rotation of our planet. Let's hope that everything described above will never become a reality.