Scientists are warning about a very curious phenomenon: due to the unexpected acceleration in Earth’s rotation, the planet will record the shortest day in its history in a few weeks.
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There are many factors that affect the speed of our planet’s rotation. For example, changes in sea level, shifts in the Earth, or the Moon’s movement away.
But this time, Earth’s rotation is speeding up at a strange rate, and the sudden phenomenon is leaving even scientists quite confused.
Now, Graham Jones, an astrophysicist at the University of London, predicted that our planet could speed up on July 9, July 22, or August 5 of this year, according to the Daily Mail.
As the Earth speeds up, our time will also pass faster. Therefore, our days will be between 1.30 and 1.51 milliseconds shorter.
Although it seems like just a fraction of time change, researchers explained that this could impact GPS systems and the way we measure time accurately.
“No one expected this. The cause of this acceleration has not been explained,” said Leonid Zotov from Moscow State University to the website Timeanddate.com.
“Most scientists believe it is something inside the Earth. Oceanic and atmospheric models do not explain this massive acceleration,” he added.
Fortunately, scientists believe that Earth will eventually slow down again, although they still don’t know when. “Sooner or later, the Earth will slow down,” Zotov stated.
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