How long does a day last on Earth? Study accurately reveals fluctuations

According to a recent study, there was a time when a day on Earth lasted only 19 hours. Another article points out that if the Sun did not influence the Earth’s rotation, a day could last approximately 65 hours. Scientists published the following research in the scientific journal Nature Photonics: It reveals the fluctuations in the time period we live in.

We know that clocks around the world show that a day lasts 24 hours, or 86,400 seconds, but this number is not exactly accurate. To calculate how long a day lasts on Earth, it is necessary to take into account the time it takes for the planet to complete one revolution in its orbit; The ‘problem’ is that this time can change due to some natural event such as an earthquake or volcanic eruption.

These events cause small differences in time compared to the whole, only on the order of milliseconds, but the scientists in the study explain that it is important to examine these differences to study different areas more deeply. For example, Fluctuations in the Earth’s rotation and time of day may be relevant to astronomy, meteorology, among other fields.

“Fluctuations in rotation are not only important for astronomy, we urgently need them to build accurate climate models and better understand meteorological events such as El Niño. The more precise the data, the more accurate the predictions will be,” says one of the authors and is from Germany. Ulrich Schreiber, professor at the Technical University of Munich (TUM) in .

How long does a day last on Earth?

After performing calculations, scientists discovered that the Earth’s rotation changes over time. It can affect the 24-hour period, causing fluctuations of up to 6 milliseconds over several weeks.

To determine the fluctuation period, the researchers used a laser gyroscope developed in an underground laboratory at the Wettzell Geodetic Observatory in Germany.

The measurement occurs as follows: the gyroscope uses a laser beam in clockwise and counterclockwise directions. In this way If the Earth’s rotation were perfect, both rays would remain the same, but one of them would be slightly different.; so they discovered the 6 millisecond fluctuation.

“Accurate knowledge of the Earth’s instantaneous rotation rate is crucial for accurate navigation and geographic location. Fluctuations in the length of the sidereal day are caused by the exchange of momentum between the Earth’s fluids (i.e., the atmosphere, hydrosphere, and cryosphere) and the solid Earth. Since several independent and globally distributed mass transport phenomena are involved, the resulting impact on the Earth’s rotation is unpredictable and needs to be measured continuously,” the researchers explain in the introduction to the study.

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