The Earth’s core is moving away, what does this mean?
A new study published in Nature Scientists from the University of Southern California (USC) have confirmed that Earth’s Inner Core Is Slowing Down and moves away from the surface of the planet.
This study provides irrefutable evidence that the inner core began to slow down around 2010, moving slower than the Earth’s surface for the first time in about 40 years.
Goodbye GPS; Hello Galileo: that’s the European satellite navigation system.
The inner core, a solid sphere of iron and nickel the size of the Moon, lies more than 4,800 km beneath our feet. Because of its inaccessibility, Scientists must use seismic waves from earthquakes to study their movement.
Research group led by John Vidaleanalyzed seismic data from 121 recurring earthquakes that occurred between 1991 and 2023 near the South Sandwich Islands. They also used data from Soviet, French, and American nuclear tests. This innovative approach This allowed them to precisely track the movements of the inner core.
How does this phenomenon affect the Earth?
The results show that the inner core has undergone super-rotation gradual from 2003 to 2008, followed by a slower sub-rotation from 2008 to 2023. This pattern of advance and retreat suggests complex dynamics between the inner core, liquid outer core, and mantle.
How Earth’s Core Slowed Down Affects Climate and Time
The slowdown of the inner core is explained by mixing of the surrounding fluid of the outer corewhich generates the Earth’s magnetic field, as well as the gravitational forces of the dense regions of the overlying rocky mantle.
In this graph from USC we see a description of the slowing down of the Earth’s core.
Although the impact on the Earth’s surface is minimal, Vidale suggests that the change can change the length of a day by a fraction of a secondalmost imperceptible effect due to the influence of the oceans and atmosphere.
Refuting a 20-year debate
This study resolves a two-decade debate about internal motion of the nucleus and provides the most compelling evidence to date of their behavior.
The researchers plan to continue studying the inner core’s trajectory to better understand why it changes and How these changes could affect our planet in the long term.
The study highlights the dynamic and complex nature of the Earth’s interior, reminding us that even the deepest corners of our planet They are in constant motion and evolution.
Although the immediate effect on the surface is not noticeableUnderstanding these internal processes is critical to our overall understanding of the Earth and how it functions.
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