The Earth’s core may have reversed its rotation

It is a theory related to one of the greatest mysteries of our planet, and for this very reason, it fascinates and causes discussion in the scientific community. A study published in the journal Natural Earth Sciences by researchers fromPeking UniversityYi Yang and Song Xiadong tell how The Earth’s core may have recently stopped spinning. Part of our planet is still very mysterious, inspiring science fiction novels and movies. However, unlike the most catastrophic fictional scenarios, this phenomenon – namely, the suspension of the rotation of the Earth’s core – It will have no effect on life on the surface. The most fascinating aspect of the research is the possible explanation for how it works. inner core like «planet within a planetSo obviously the way you move is very important,” Al explained The New York Times Xiao Dong Songauthor of the study.

planet within a planet

«Earth’s core is a distant thingIt is impossible to access it, and for this reason, hypotheses about its work are blooming like mushrooms, ”he explained. Massimo Chiappini At Ansa, director of the Department of Environment at the National Institute of Geophysics and Volcanology. The inner core of the Earth must consist of a A sphere surrounded by a liquid outer core. It is made up of one Iron and nickel alloysIts radius is 1220 kilometers. for him temperature Will be similar to those on the surface of the sun. very high. But strong pressure prevents the minerals from completely melting and being preserved The pulp is in a solid state. Its discovery dates back to 1936Thanks studies Danish seismologist Inge Lehmann. The core is not connected to the solid mantle of the Earth precisely because it is surrounded by a more liquid part: hence the theory that it It rotates at a slightly different speed than the speed of the planet And it can speed up or slow down. Should rotate affect the Earth’s magnetism. It was only Dr. Xiaodong Song, in the mid-1990s, who was among the first to propose this theory.

Because the Earth’s core is difficult to study

It sounds paradoxical, but it turns out that studying the core of our planet is much more difficult than observing what is in space, light years away from us. This is because Extreme pressure and high temperatures make it nearly impossible to use measuring instruments. “We have very little certainty about what the Earth’s interior looks like and the best tool we have at our disposal Study of seismic waves that spread through it », adds Chiappini.

Peking University Theory

Going back to Peking University research, we started from here comparison between the propagation of seismic waves Resulting from some violent earthquakes in the 1960s and others in the 1990s. According to the researchers, the analysis shows that the rotation of the Earth’s core has changed over the decades, and they expect it to It stopped completely between 2009 and 2011. And they add that this turnover can go to Cycles of about 70 years. Starting from surveys of earthquakes in recent decades, researchers have argued that in the early 1970s, the Earth’s core was spinning at the same speed as the planet. where rotation in the east It increased until it exceeded the Earth’s rotation speed. Then slow to a stop. Now it could start a new cycle, with an inverted direction of rotation, toward the west. The expectation is that there will be an acceleration and then a new deceleration, with Next stop around 2040.