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Tip of the Day
Keep eggs out of the fridge to save energy when cooking them
NASA: Earthquake in Chile shifted Earth’s axis
image source: NASA
The quake measured 8.8. on the Richter scale and is estimated to have shifted the Earth’s axis by 2.7 milliarcseconds (8 cm or 3 in) and shortened the length of the day by 1.26 microseconds (millionths of a second) according to an article from Bloomberg. So much land was moved during the earthquake that it may have significantly changed the Earth’s distribution of mass enough to affect such changes.
Previous earthquakes have had a similar effect, according to Richard Gross, a geophysicist at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California:
The magnitude 9.1 Sumatran in 2004 that generated an Indian Ocean tsunami shortened the day by 6.8 microseconds and shifted the axis by about 2.3 milliarcseconds, Gross said.
–Bloomberg
The length of the day shortens due to something called the ‘Ice Skater Effect’, in which balance influences speed of rotation, like when in ice skater pulls her arms in to speed up during a spin.
From a similar CNN report:
On the other hand, the length of a day also can increase. For example, if the Three Gorges reservoir in China were filled, it would hold 10 trillion gallons (40 cubic kilometers) of water. The shift of mass would lengthen days by 0.06 microsecond, scientists said.
Such consequences of the quake vis-à-vis the Earth’s axis are interesting, but insignificant in terms of what we experience and of course do not detract from the human cost of the disaster.
by Graham Land
Tags: axis, Chile, Earth, earthquake, NASA, quake, scientists, shift, shifted
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Hi Gonzalo. Thanks for your comment and questions.
I’m not qualified to answer as to whether another quake could happen there.
However, what I understand from what I’ve read regarding the axis shift is that this is just a scientific detail regarding large movements of the Earth’s matter – it has no practical consequences in and of itself because the shift was so tiny. The real news is as you said: about the victims and survivors.
I’ve read your interesting article about the earthquake in Chile. Actually Im one of the survivors cause I live in Concepcion, where the quake took place.
My concern is if there is any possibility that another quake of the same magnitude could take place any time soon in the same region since the previous shifted the Earth axis. Is there a possibility that the Earth could move again to get its original position as before the quake???
I’m in desperate need to know about this becasue the replicas haven’t been stopped since then and the news here are about the victims and the survivors.
best wishes,
Gonzalo Pérez García