Earth is spinning faster, scientists say, 2021 will be shorter
Earth is spinning faster, scientists say, 2021 will be shorter
Is the Earth spinning faster? Scientists think so., Earth is spinning faster, scientists say, 2021 will be shorter That’s a retreat from previous records showing that for decades, the Earth took slightly longer than 24 hours to complete a rotation.
The International Earth Rotation and Reference Systems Service (IERS) announced in July of last year that no “leap second” would be added to the world’s official timekeeping in December 2020.
Since leap seconds are always added on the last day of June or December, the next possible date for a leap second is June 30, 2021.
According to scientists, the days are on average about 0.5 seconds shorter than 24 hours. Though the time difference is noticed only at the atomic level, experts say its impact could be significant.
World timekeepers are debating whether to delete a second from time — called a “negative leap second” — to account for the change and bring time passage back into line with the rotation of the Earth.
“It’s quite possible that a negative leap second will be needed if the Earth’s rotation rate increases further,” Peter Whibberley, a senior research scientist at the National Physical Laboratory, told The Telegraph. “But it’s too early to say if this is likely to happen.”
