The 29th of June was the shortest day in recorded history, thanks to a ‘wobble’ in the Earth’s spin that shaved off 1.59 milliseconds.
This summer, the Earth had its shortest day ever, due to a wobble in its axis that allowed it to complete a single spin in a fraction of a second less than 24 hours.
According to the website timeanddate.com, June 29 was 1.59 milliseconds shorter than 86,400 seconds, or exactly 24 hours.
In recent decades, the Earth has slowed down, resulting in somewhat longer days. However, in recent years, this trend has reversed, and the days have become increasingly shorter.
If the Earth continues to speed up, it may be necessary to remove a second from atomic clocks for the first time.
The Earth is not without flaws.
The Earth frequently wobbles – the spinning that we perceive as night and day does not always occur exactly in line with its axis, the line connecting the North and South Poles.
This is due to the fact that it is not an exact sphere.
The equator has a bulge, while the poles are somewhat squashed, indicating that Earth is slightly elliptical.
Other forces, like as ocean tides and moon gravity, can also interfere with the spinning.
The “Chandler sway”
Leonid Zotov, a mathematics professor, argues that the planet is rotating faster due to a periodic movement known as the “Chandler wobble.”
The wobble was discovered in the late 1880s by astronomer Seth Carlo Chandler, who noted the poles wobbling during a 14-month period.
According to the Telegraph, the wobble began to diminish in the early 2000s, hitting historic lows in 2017.
And, according to Zotov, “it vanished” between 2017 and 2020.
According to timeanddate.com, Zotov will propose this concept at the Asia Oceania Geosciences Society. It is yet to be peer-reviewed.
In everyday life, the Earth wobbles barely alter. However, they must be monitored in order for the atomic clock to stay accurate enough to properly synchronise GPS and earth-observing satellites.