4 ms·
Here's a fun thought: As humans dig heavy materials out of the earth and build taller buildings, we increase the moment of inertia of the planet. This theoretic
by evv 2y ago
Here's a fun thought: As humans dig heavy materials out of the earth and build taller buildings, we increase the moment of inertia of the planet. This theoretically slows the rotation of the earth.
Of course, given the huge mass of the earth, the effect so far would be negligible. But maybe it would be noticed in the distant future if it were done on a much much greater scale than it is today.
As more food for thought, we are also changing the moment of inertia by putting so many planes in the sky, and by sending mass to space. If every plane were to land, the earth should rotate slightly faster.
- rrr_oh_man 2y agoSomeone knowledgeable should do the math
- defrost 2y agoDrift of Earth's Pole Confirms Groundwater Depletion as a Significant Contributor to Global Sea Level Rise 1993–2010 https://agupubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1029/2023GL103509 https://agupubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1029/2023GL10... Humans Have Shifted Earth's Axis by Pumping Lots of Groundwater. For decades, humans have been pumping so much water out of the ground that it has caused Earth's axis of rotation to shift, according to a new study published last week in the journal Geophysical Research Letters. https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/humans-have-shifted-earths-axis-by-pumping-lots-of-groundwater-180982403 https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/humans-have-shifte...
- zer00eyz 2y agoYou just have to build a big dam: https://medium.com/coinmonks/three-gorges-dam-a-climate-change-catalyst-and-earths-rotational-slowdown-56acb0ae8bf4 https://medium.com/coinmonks/three-gorges-dam-a-climate-chan...
- atoav 2y agoBut on the other side this contributes to global warming which melts of a lot of water-ice that is in high places and will (as water does) go to low places.