Earthquake WARNING: Earth’s rotation is SLOWING and it will lead to MAJOR tremors
EARTH’S rotation is mysteriously slowing down and it could lead to an increase in major disasters such as earthquakes, researchers warn.
May 20, 2019
Scientists have long known that the rotation of the Earth is slowing down – as we have seen sporadically throughout history – but experts now realise the consequences that come with this, including earthquakes. The speed of Earth’s rotation fluctuates extremely mildly – extending or decreasing the length of a day by a millisecond – but this tiny deceleration could have devastating repercussions. Exactly why a decrease in rotation speed can lead to more major earthquakes is unclear, but experts believe it could be down to changes in the Earth’s core which ultimately has an effect on the surface.
Another theory is that the Moon is moving further away from our planet, slowing it down ever so slightly as it does.
Professor of geoscience Stephen Meyers at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, said: “As the moon moves away, the Earth is like a spinning figure skater who slows down as they stretch their arms out.”
Physicist Paul Walorski explained on physics forum PhysLink: “To picture what is happening, imagine yourself riding a bicycle on a track built around a Merry-go-Round.
“You are riding in the same direction that it is turning. If you have a lasso and rope one of the horses, you would gain speed and the Merry-Go-Round would lose some.
“In this analogy, you and your bike represent the Moon, the Merry-Go-Round is the rotating Earth, and your lasso is gravity. In orbital mechanics, a gain in speed results in a higher orbit.
“The slowing rotation of the Earth results in a longer day as well as a longer month.
“Once the length of a day equals the length of a month, the tidal friction mechanism will cease (IE Once your speed on the track matches the speed of the horses, you can’t gain any more speed with your lasso trick.)
“That’s been projected to happen once the day and month both equal about 47 (current) days, billions of years in the future.
However, what is known is that a slower planet could increase the number of earthquakes.
Research from Roger Bilham of the University of Colorado in Boulder and Rebecca Bendick of the University of Montana in Missoula looked at earthquakes with a magnitude higher than seven since 1900.
The duo found five years since the turn of the 20th century where there were significantly more 7.0 earthquakes – all of which were years that earth’s rotation speed had slowed down slightly.
Prof Bilham said: “In these periods, there were between 25 to 30 intense earthquakes a year.
“The rest of the time the average figure was around 15 major earthquakes a year.
“The correlation between Earth’s rotation and earthquake activity is strong and suggests there is going to be an increase in numbers of intense earthquakes.”
https://www.express.co.uk/news/science/1129506/earthquake-today-what-is-earthquakes-map-news-how-fast-does-the-earth-spin
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