The quake
The quake in Asia was again such a disaster that makes us all feel so small and powerless against the furious nature. I hope the help from all over the world can reach the sufferers as soon as possible.
Saw a small article in a Dutch newspaper last week that the Earth is now turning faster since the quake in Asia. It’s so radical! Sounds like a science fiction story. I checked on the internet and found the original article of “The Independent”.
From Independent News (December 30, 2004)
The quake that set off the devastating tsunami literally shook the Earth to its core, scientists believe, accelerating its rotation and shortening days by a fraction of a second. It may be necessary to add a "leap second" in years to come in order to correct the change.
(.....)
Richard Gross, a geophysicist with Nasa's jet propulsion laboratory in California, said he believed a shift of mass towards the Earth's centre caused the planet to spin three microseconds - one millionth of a second - faster. It also caused the planet to tilt around 2.5cm on its axis.
"[The forcing of one tectonic plate beneath the edge of another] had the effect of making the Earth more compact and spinning faster," he said, saying that the changes were too slight to be detected by global positioning satellite networks.
(.....)
Saw a small article in a Dutch newspaper last week that the Earth is now turning faster since the quake in Asia. It’s so radical! Sounds like a science fiction story. I checked on the internet and found the original article of “The Independent”.
From Independent News (December 30, 2004)
The quake that set off the devastating tsunami literally shook the Earth to its core, scientists believe, accelerating its rotation and shortening days by a fraction of a second. It may be necessary to add a "leap second" in years to come in order to correct the change.
(.....)
Richard Gross, a geophysicist with Nasa's jet propulsion laboratory in California, said he believed a shift of mass towards the Earth's centre caused the planet to spin three microseconds - one millionth of a second - faster. It also caused the planet to tilt around 2.5cm on its axis.
"[The forcing of one tectonic plate beneath the edge of another] had the effect of making the Earth more compact and spinning faster," he said, saying that the changes were too slight to be detected by global positioning satellite networks.
(.....)
posted by Kym. @ 1/03/2005 04:47:00 PM
4 Comments:
At January 4, 2005 at 3:12:00 AM GMT+1,
Victor said…
I thought this last week felt shorter - now it all makes sense! I'm kidding of course.
I have heard there is evidence that the earth may have had large shifts in its axis and even reversal of its magnetic fields over its history - radically changing climates and weather patterns. Seems amazing that one event such as this could affect the earth so much almost instantly!
Well, who know's what "Mother Earth" will do next, but it's uplifting to see the outpouring of care for our fellow travellers!
At January 4, 2005 at 1:46:00 PM GMT+1,
Borya said…
You are making a good point, Victor. What will come next? Deserts or ice age?
At January 4, 2005 at 11:02:00 PM GMT+1,
Junniper, MPA said…
What an interesting (odd) theory. So would we have "leap years" and "second leap years"?? Cuz that would really confuse people. :)
In all seriousness, though, what a disaster to strike the world. I remember thinking on that first day... '20,000 people??? That's unfathomable!' Now at seven times that many I just don't know what to think.
At January 6, 2005 at 2:19:00 AM GMT+1,
Kym. said…
Yeah, and the number of the victims is getting higher every day... and there are so many people still missing. It's so...terrible, really beyond our imagination.
Kym.
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