Earth’s Inner Core Stops Rotating
Earth’s core may have stopped rotating.
Research has shown that the Earth’s inner core has stopped turning and may be even spinning in reverse.
It has always been generally believed that the core rotates counter-clockwise when viewed from the North Pole, like the rest of planet Earth.
Previous research has shown that the planet’s inner core is separated from the rest of the Earth by a liquid metal in the outer core, meaning it spins independently and not necessarily in sync with the rest of the planet earth.
A study analysing seismic wave data over the past 60 years by researchers at Peking University in China has said that the core’s rotation stopped in the year 2009, and then restarted in the opposite direction soon afterwards.
“We show surprising observations that indicate the inner core has nearly ceased its rotation in the recent decade and may be experiencing a turning-back.” they said
According to this researchers, the last rotation change before 2009 would have occurred in the early 70s, and the next one will take place in the near future around 2040.
It is said changes within Earth’s core always have an impact for humans living on the planet’s surface, altering things like navigation and even the length of the day.
