Days will be 25 hours

4.5 billion years of evolution is the time it takes the Earth to complete its evolution Its rotation around its axis It has gradually increased. 1.5 billion years ago, when microscopic life began to appear, this period was only 18 hours and 41 minutes. In the time of the dinosaurs, 66 million, 23 hours ago. Millisecond by millisecond, our planet is rotating more and more slowly, and everything indicates that in 200 million years, the days will be… 25 hours.

This has been validated by scientists from the Technical University of Munich (TUM) using Ultra-precision laser tool. To measure the planet’s rotation speed in the most accurate way ever.

There are many Factors affecting variation On this scale: the internal movements of the solid and liquid components that make up the planet, the changes in the distribution of its mass, the gravitational interactions with the Moon and the Sun, the oscillation experienced by its axis… all of this causes small variations in the Earth’s speed.

Thanks to the laser used (which was put into operation in 2011 at the Wettzell Geodetic Observatory of the TUM), it became possible to verify, for example, that the rotation at the equator is about 15 degrees per hour, which corresponds to a frequency of 348.5 Hz, with fluctuations Daily ranging from 1 to 3 microHz. Depending on the instrument, The planet’s rotation fluctuates by about six milliseconds every two weeks.

The authors point out that this measurement is fundamental to meteorology, climate prediction models, and our location in the solar system. “Fluctuations in circulation are not only important for astronomy, but we also desperately need them to create accurate climate models and better understand weather phenomena like El Niño. The more accurate the data, the more accurate the forecasts will be.” Ulrich Schreiberproject leader.