Climate change is slowing the Earth’s rotation –

During the past century, the level of emissions has been continuously increasing exponentially, and despite all the ominous warnings, the process continues to increase even at this moment. According to a newly published study, this factor also has an unwanted side effect: the melting ice slows down the Earth’s rotation.

According to new research from ETH Zürich, the problem goes beyond itself, since due to the continuous melting of the Antarctic and Greenland ice caps, the celestial body has to push more and more meltwater towards the equator during its rotation. According to Benedikt Soja, a researcher at the institution, this phenomenon – similar to a figure skater spinning with outstretched arms – causes a significant mass shift and thus deceleration.

And this, even if very slowly, brakes the rotation of our planet around its own axis. Right now, that’s just a few milliseconds a day, but the impact can be significant over time. Although the tidal phenomenon also has such an effect, if the warming continues like this, it will not even approach its extent.

In the course of the above research, it was investigated in Zurich how the changes within the Earth’s core are taking place in the meantime. The research group created a simulation modeling the last 120 years, which showed the shift of the planet’s axis and also that the axis of rotation had changed. The experiment proved that changes in axis and rotation speed have an influence on the subsurface distribution of magma.

It is assumed that this may also affect the Earth’s magnetic field, although it is impossible to support this with measurements, since we cannot directly examine the planet’s core. We can only credibly examine the consequences of the climate changes that are currently underway, but the results so far lead us to conclude that we may still be surprised.

The research group noted that, in light of this, space exploration must also take into account future changes in the climate. The millisecond added to Earth’s days will not significantly affect the daily commute, but from the point of view of space navigation, such a difference can even mean important kilometers in terms of reaching the ground.