Earth's Core Stops and Reverses Rotation: Sign Felt by Humans

Intan Rakhmayanti Dewi, CNBC Indonesia

Tech

Monday, 31/07/2023 07:10 WIB

Photo: Appearance of Earth from Space (Astro_Megan via Space_Station)

Jakarta, CNBC Indonesia – The rotation of the Earth’s core was reported to have stopped and possibly reversed. The sign of this event has been felt by humans.

For information, the Earth’s core consists of two layers, namely the liquid and solid outer core. For the latter, it is made of iron which actually rotates.

Meanwhile a study published in the journal Nature Geoscience found oddities in the Earth’s core. According to China’s Peking University Team, the findings show changes in rotation on a decade scale.

They also added that their findings could help understand what happened at the bottom of the Earth and ultimately affected the surface, quoted Popsci, Monday (31/7/2023).

Seismologists Yi Yang and Xiaodong Song observed the seismic waves in this study. They analyzed differences in waveforms and travel times when earthquakes traveled along the same path since the 1960s. The earthquakes investigated occurred from 1995 to 2021.

The results before 2009 turned out that the Earth’s rotation was slightly faster than the surface and parts of the mantle. But then slowed down and stopped around the year.

The research team also believes the results could be linked to a seven-decade reversal of core rotation. This was in the early 1970s, they said.

In addition, the team also explained that this variation is related to small changes in geophysical observations on the surface. For example, the length of the day or changes in the magnetic field.

Volatility in the rotation of the Earth’s core, influences the variation in the time it takes for the Earth to rotate 360 degrees on its axis. Finally, humans on the surface of the Earth feel the length of the day varies.

The study authors concluded that fluctuations in the rotation of the core along with a number of periodic changes indicate interactions between the different layers of the Earth.

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