Latest news with #InternationalEarthRotationandReferenceSystemsService
Economic Times
2 days ago
- Science
- Economic Times
Earth is rotating faster, say scientists: What it means and should you worry?
Earth's rotation is speeding up, causing days to shorten by a fraction of a second since 2020. Scientists predict that a leap second might need to be removed in 2029 to align clocks with the planet's faster spin. While the cause remains unclear, researchers are exploring factors within the Earth's core, though this change is not a cause for concern. Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Why are days getting shorter now? Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads What might be causing the faster spin? No need to worry, say scientists The Earth is spinning slightly faster than before, and that means our days are becoming shorter by a tiny fraction of a second. Scientists say this trend has been noticeable since 2020, and by 2029, we may even need to remove a leap second from our clocks—the first time such a step would be change in rotation speed is not entirely new. Earth's rotation has shifted gradually over millions of years. For example, days were about 23 hours long during the time of dinosaurs. During the Bronze Age, each day was already half a second shorter than now. According to scientists, if long-term patterns continue, an Earth day might last 25 hours—but only after about 200 million takes roughly 86,400 seconds to complete a full spin. But this number is not exact. Several factors, such as ocean tides, volcanic activity, earthquakes, and even changes below the surface, can affect how fast Earth the general trend over centuries has been a gradual slowing down, the International Earth Rotation and Reference Systems Service (IERS), based in Washington D.C., says the planet has been spinning faster since 2020. This increase has been consistent enough that experts predict we might need to subtract a leap second in 2029 to keep clocks aligned with Earth's rotation.A report by states that this pattern will likely continue into 2025. The shortest days of that year are expected to fall on July 9, July 22, and August 5. On August 5, Earth's rotation could be 1.51 milliseconds shorter than the usual 24 reason behind this recent speed-up is still unclear. Researchers are studying different possibilities, but none has given a complete Zotov, a researcher at Moscow State University, told 'Nobody expected this.' Zotov co-authored a 2022 study on the topic but admitted that no existing model fully explains the scientists believe the answer may be found deep within the Earth's core. Changes in the oceans or atmosphere do not seem strong enough to explain the sudden increase. However, factors like melting polar ice and shifting land surfaces may also influence rotation Earth is spinning faster now, scientists say this does not signal a major shift. Over the long term, the planet still tends to slow down. The current changes are small and will not lead to a return to prehistoric-day lengths anytime possible removal of a leap second in 2029 would mark an adjustment to match atomic time with Earth's actual spin. It would not affect daily life, but it serves as a reminder that even something as constant as time is not completely fixed.
Time of India
2 days ago
- Science
- Time of India
Earth is rotating faster, say scientists: What it means and should you worry?
The Earth is spinning slightly faster than before, and that means our days are becoming shorter by a tiny fraction of a second. Scientists say this trend has been noticeable since 2020, and by 2029, we may even need to remove a leap second from our clocks—the first time such a step would be taken. This change in rotation speed is not entirely new. Earth's rotation has shifted gradually over millions of years. For example, days were about 23 hours long during the time of dinosaurs. During the Bronze Age, each day was already half a second shorter than now. According to scientists, if long-term patterns continue, an Earth day might last 25 hours—but only after about 200 million years. Why are days getting shorter now? Earth takes roughly 86,400 seconds to complete a full spin. But this number is not exact. Several factors, such as ocean tides, volcanic activity, earthquakes, and even changes below the surface, can affect how fast Earth spins. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like When the Camera Clicked at the Worst Possible Time Read More While the general trend over centuries has been a gradual slowing down, the International Earth Rotation and Reference Systems Service (IERS), based in Washington D.C., says the planet has been spinning faster since 2020. This increase has been consistent enough that experts predict we might need to subtract a leap second in 2029 to keep clocks aligned with Earth's rotation. A report by states that this pattern will likely continue into 2025. The shortest days of that year are expected to fall on July 9, July 22, and August 5. On August 5, Earth's rotation could be 1.51 milliseconds shorter than the usual 24 hours. Live Events What might be causing the faster spin? The reason behind this recent speed-up is still unclear. Researchers are studying different possibilities, but none has given a complete answer. Leonid Zotov, a researcher at Moscow State University, told 'Nobody expected this.' Zotov co-authored a 2022 study on the topic but admitted that no existing model fully explains the change. Most scientists believe the answer may be found deep within the Earth's core. Changes in the oceans or atmosphere do not seem strong enough to explain the sudden increase. However, factors like melting polar ice and shifting land surfaces may also influence rotation speed. No need to worry, say scientists Although Earth is spinning faster now, scientists say this does not signal a major shift. Over the long term, the planet still tends to slow down. The current changes are small and will not lead to a return to prehistoric-day lengths anytime soon. The possible removal of a leap second in 2029 would mark an adjustment to match atomic time with Earth's actual spin. It would not affect daily life, but it serves as a reminder that even something as constant as time is not completely fixed.
Time of India
2 days ago
- Science
- Time of India
Earth is spinning faster, say scientists: What it means and should you worry?
The Earth is spinning slightly faster than before, and that means our days are becoming shorter by a tiny fraction of a second. Scientists say this trend has been noticeable since 2020, and by 2029, we may even need to remove a leap second from our clocks—the first time such a step would be taken. This change in rotation speed is not entirely new. Earth's rotation has shifted gradually over millions of years. For example, days were about 23 hours long during the time of dinosaurs. During the Bronze Age, each day was already half a second shorter than now. According to scientists, if long-term patterns continue, an Earth day might last 25 hours—but only after about 200 million years. Why are days getting shorter now? Earth takes roughly 86,400 seconds to complete a full spin. But this number is not exact. Several factors, such as ocean tides, volcanic activity, earthquakes, and even changes below the surface, can affect how fast Earth spins. Play Video Play Skip Backward Skip Forward Mute Current Time 0:00 / Duration 0:00 Loaded : 0% Stream Type LIVE Seek to live, currently behind live LIVE Remaining Time - 0:00 1x Playback Rate Chapters Chapters Descriptions descriptions off , selected Captions captions and subtitles off , selected Audio Track Picture-in-Picture Fullscreen This is a modal window. Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window. Text Color White Black Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Opacity Opaque Semi-Transparent Text Background Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Opacity Opaque Semi-Transparent Transparent Caption Area Background Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Opacity Transparent Semi-Transparent Opaque Font Size 50% 75% 100% 125% 150% 175% 200% 300% 400% Text Edge Style None Raised Depressed Uniform Drop shadow Font Family Proportional Sans-Serif Monospace Sans-Serif Proportional Serif Monospace Serif Casual Script Small Caps Reset restore all settings to the default values Done Close Modal Dialog End of dialog window. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Ingin Tahu Tentang Diagnosis Limfoma? Dapatkan Info Selengkapnya Limfoma Baca Undo While the general trend over centuries has been a gradual slowing down, the International Earth Rotation and Reference Systems Service (IERS), based in Washington D.C., says the planet has been spinning faster since 2020. This increase has been consistent enough that experts predict we might need to subtract a leap second in 2029 to keep clocks aligned with Earth's rotation. A report by states that this pattern will likely continue into 2025. The shortest days of that year are expected to fall on July 9, July 22, and August 5. On August 5, Earth's rotation could be 1.51 milliseconds shorter than the usual 24 hours. Live Events What might be causing the faster spin? The reason behind this recent speed-up is still unclear. Researchers are studying different possibilities, but none has given a complete answer. Leonid Zotov, a researcher at Moscow State University, told 'Nobody expected this.' Zotov co-authored a 2022 study on the topic but admitted that no existing model fully explains the change. Most scientists believe the answer may be found deep within the Earth's core. Changes in the oceans or atmosphere do not seem strong enough to explain the sudden increase. However, factors like melting polar ice and shifting land surfaces may also influence rotation speed. No need to worry, say scientists Although Earth is spinning faster now, scientists say this does not signal a major shift. Over the long term, the planet still tends to slow down. The current changes are small and will not lead to a return to prehistoric-day lengths anytime soon. The possible removal of a leap second in 2029 would mark an adjustment to match atomic time with Earth's actual spin. It would not affect daily life, but it serves as a reminder that even something as constant as time is not completely fixed.
Time of India
3 days ago
- Science
- Time of India
Shorter days ahead? Earth's rotation is speeding up, warn scientists
We often think of time—like the 24-hour day—as something fixed and unchanging. But in reality, even Earth's rotation isn't constant. Scientists have now found that our planet is spinning faster than it used to, and that means days are getting just a tiny bit shorter. This might sound strange, but Earth's rotation has always changed over long periods. Dinosaurs, for example, lived with 23-hour days. And in the Bronze Age, the average day was already about half a second shorter than today's standard. Looking ahead, scientists predict that 200 million years from now, one Earth day will last about 25 hours. Why is the Earth spinning faster? Normally, a day lasts 24 hours, or 86,400 seconds. But that's not completely accurate. Many things—like earthquakes, volcanic activity, ocean tides, and even underground changes—can make the planet spin slightly faster or slower. Even though the overall trend has been for Earth to slow down, something unusual has been happening since 2020. According to the International Earth Rotation and Reference Systems Service (IERS), based in Washington D.C., the Earth's rotation has started to speed up. This has been happening steadily enough that experts now believe we may need to remove a leap second from our clocks in 2029—the first time this has ever happened. A recent report from says that this trend will continue into 2025. Based on current data, the three shortest days of the year will be July 9, July 22, and August 5. The shortest of all, August 5, is expected to be about 1.51 milliseconds shorter than the usual 24 hours. What's causing it? This unexpected speed-up has puzzled experts. Leonid Zotov, a rotation researcher at Moscow State University, told 'Nobody expected this.' Zotov helped write a 2022 study trying to figure out the cause, but he says that so far, no model fully explains it. Most scientists believe the answer lies deep inside the Earth—possibly something happening in the core. Ocean and atmosphere changes don't seem to account for the speed increase. While this spinning trend might continue for now, it's not a sign that we're heading back to dinosaur-era days. Earth's long-term natural tendency is still to slow down over time. Things like melting ice at the poles and surface changes can also affect this. So, while we might 'lose' a leap second soon, Earth isn't going off track—just reminding us that even time isn't perfectly steady.
