The earths core has stopped spinning!!!

[Rob Campbell]

The last flat earther I saw found out that gravity was indeed real, lol.
Yes, it's wrong to make fun of the dead; but if you launch yourself in a homemade rocket, physics is not your friend. I started to post a link to the video, but apparently I still have some humanity left.

I remember Splat McFlattard. The irony is his homemade rocket only went up about 2,000 feet. He could have gone higher and been a lot safer chartering a general aviation aircraft and pilot. Also would have been a lot cheaper.

 

[Funkworks]

Many people are interested in or at least have heard of the "multiverse" theory. Perhaps there is another universe out there with no gravity?

Cosmology is based on gravity, so there isn't much ground under that hypothesis (Ha! See what I did there! ). I could say a little more on what multiverse means (originally) but I think that would be off-topic.

If earths magnetic field goes away the solar wind will be the the big problem. It will strip the atmosphere off in a dozen years or so. Cosmic rays carry so much energy they are largely immune to the magnetic field.

Just to be clear, no one suggested that. But yeah, atmospheres and rays and fields are fascinating.

Pfft. Fake news...the earth is flat after all!

At this point, I think that's the best approach to this thread. I'll go be serious elsewhere and come back later to joke around.

 

[Ez2cDave]

So, basically, the Earth is in "Gimbal Lock" . . .

Dave F.

 

[James53]

Where do we get our anti-solar wind vaccinations?

 

[hobie1dog]

I remember Splat McFlattard. The irony is his homemade rocket only went up about 2,000 feet. He could have gone higher and been a lot safer chartering a general aviation aircraft and pilot. Also would have been a lot cheaper.

when I read that story I just shook my head at how ignorant he was to put himself in a rocket that was only going to go up even 5,000 ft compared to a commercial airliner and I just couldn't believe that he'd want to risk his life in a Solo rocket.

 

[NateB]

when I read that story I just shook my head at how ignorant he was to put himself in a rocket that was only going to go up even 5,000 ft compared to a commercial airliner and I just couldn't believe that he'd want to risk his life in a Solo rocket.

He was a stunt man - performing a stunt that went wrong. Science is involved, but I doubt space was the goal and flat earthers were the sponsor.

 

[Michael L]

Sounds like a great premise for a movie... A mission to go to the core and spin it back up so that our compasses won't be rendered useless.

The compasses will be fine. Just turn them until they point in the right direction

 

[Rob Campbell]

So this is it. We're all going to die.

 

[Michael L]

So this is it. We're all going to die.

Yes... it's the ultimate benchmark of the truth...

 

[Peartree]

1st (clutch-shift), 2nd (clutch-shift), 3rd...

The earth's core hasn't stopped...

...It's *shifting*.

 

[NateB]

 

[hobie1dog]

"The earth rotates once every 23 hours, 56 minutes and 4.09053 seconds, called the sidereal period, and its circumference is roughly 40,075 kilometers. Thus, the surface of the earth at the equator moves at a speed of 460 meters per second--or roughly 1,000 miles per hour."

 

[ThirstyBarbarian]

I’m amazed that the core of the earth spins at a different rate than the surface at all, let alone that the rate can change. You would think that in 4+ billion years, it would all be turning at the same speed.

 

[jd2cylman]

I’m amazed that the core of the earth spins at a different rate than the surface at all, let alone that the rate can change. You would think that in 4+ billion years, it would all be turning at the same speed.

A interactive 3D video of this would be fascinating.

 

[ThirstyBarbarian]

Maybe if the core pulls its arms in, it can speed up its spin again. Wheeeeeeeeeeeee!

 

[rharshberger]

Where do we get our anti-solar wind vaccinations?

Give Fauci some time......

 

[rharshberger]

I’m amazed that the core of the earth spins at a different rate than the surface at all, let alone that the rate can change. You would think that in 4+ billion years, it would all be turning at the same speed.

I found that interesting as well, might have to do with the inner solid cores suspension inside the outer liquid core.

 

[Dotini]

I found that interesting as well, might have to do with the inner solid cores suspension inside the outer liquid core.

For quite a number of years NASA has been quietly investigating the Solar System with many relatively inexpensive unmanned probes. Perhaps they have an explanation for the peculiar behavior of Earth's core?

From a recent article by CNN:

Song and Yang argue that, based on their calculations, a small imbalance in the electromagnetic and gravitational forces could slow and even reverse the inner core’s rotation. They believe this is part of a seven-decade cycle, and that the turning point prior to the one they detected in their data around 2009/2010 occurred in the early 1970s.

Tkalcic, who is the author of “The Earth’s Inner Core: Revealed by Observational Seismology,” said the study’s “data analysis is sound.” However, the study’s findings “should be taken cautiously” as “more data and innovative methods are needed to shed light on this interesting problem.”

Song and Yang agreed that more research was needed.

Tkalcic, who dedicates an entire chapter of his book to the inner core rotation, suggested the inner core’s cycle is every 20 to 30 years, rather than the 70 proposed in the latest study. He explained why such variations occur and why it was so difficult to understand what happens in the innermost reaches of the planet.

Earth's inner core may have stopped turning and could go into reverse, study suggests | CNN

The rotation of Earth's inner core may have paused and it could even go into reverse, new research suggests.

www.cnn.com

I like the Tkalcic suggestion of a cycle in the region of 20 to 30 years.

 

[jd2cylman]

Let’s just cut a slice out of this apple (or pie, if you still think it’s flat), cover it with plexiglass and watch it for a couple of days… then hook up a Briggs motor and give it a little boost.

 

[hobie1dog]

Lots of conflicting speculation.

 

[SDramstad]

Lots of conflicting speculation.

That’s how science works

 

[DaHabes]

I am not buying the premise of the article that the core "stopped spinning". It makes no sense. I'm calling bullshit.

The solid inner core spins at a different rate than the liquid outer core. If the solid core stopped "spinning" (relative to the liquid outer core?) the friction between the inner and out cores would be enormous. I find that hard to believe. According to basic physics, the solid core would tend to stay in motion (conservation of momentum). It would take an unfathomable amount of force to make it stop or change direction.

One the other hand, the liquid core can change speed more easily because it is fluid. It takes a long time, but an uneven flow of energy from the solid core outward undoubtedly contributes to the liquid core changing speeds. Would it completely change directions (flowing backward against the planetary spin)? Highly doubtful, for the same conservation of momentum reasons. Now, the internal flow of molten iron and nickel of the liquid core could change from North to South (think of the jet stream that fluctuates up and down as a poor proxy) as it rotates with the planet and vice-versa and THAT would flip the magnetic field polarity. During that change in flow, the magnetic field would collapse for a time before it got re-established.

So, I think that what we are reading in the press is either 1) scientists that are poor communicators (very plausible or 2) reporters that don't know basic science and are misinterpreting what the scientists are saying (very plausible ) or 3) both (most likely).

 

[astronwolf]

So this is it. We're all going to die.

But will the hobby survive with $100 J motors?

 

[Funkworks]

For those putting some thought into this, here’s the paper again:

Multidecadal variation of the Earth’s inner-core rotation - Nature Geoscience

Multidecadal oscillation of the Earth’s inner core, coinciding with length of day and magnetic field variations, is experiencing a pause and reversing, according to analysis of repeating seismic waves traversing the inner core since the 1960s.

www.nature.com

And here’s a famous professor doing what a famous professor does.

 

[Dotini]

For those putting some thought into this, here’s the paper again:

Multidecadal variation of the Earth’s inner-core rotation - Nature Geoscience

Multidecadal oscillation of the Earth’s inner core, coinciding with length of day and magnetic field variations, is experiencing a pause and reversing, according to analysis of repeating seismic waves traversing the inner core since the 1960s.

www.nature.com

And here’s a famous professor doing what a famous professor does.

When I read the Nature abstract I was startled to read this:
"This multidecadal periodicity coincides with changes in several other geophysical observations, especially the length of day and magnetic field."

Well, just last year a record was set for shortest day ever. Elsewhere I read this:
"Earth's magnetic field is rapidly getting weaker, and geophysicists don't know why. The decrease in strength--a startling 10% in the last 160 years--could signal that the magnetic field is starting one of its sporadic flip-flops."

"Today, the dipole is weakening so quickly that it would vanish within 2000 years if the current rate continues. Some scientists have wondered whether this is the early stage of a reversal, because the field has been stable for an unusually long 780,000 years."

Science | AAAS

www.science.org

 

[Marc_G]

 

[Funkworks]

When I read the Nature abstract I was startled to read this:
"This multidecadal periodicity coincides with changes in several other geophysical observations, especially the length of day and magnetic field."

Well, just last year a record was set for shortest day ever. Elsewhere I read this:
"Earth's magnetic field is rapidly getting weaker, and geophysicists don't know why. The decrease in strength--a startling 10% in the last 160 years--could signal that the magnetic field is starting one of its sporadic flip-flops."

"Today, the dipole is weakening so quickly that it would vanish within 2000 years if the current rate continues. Some scientists have wondered whether this is the early stage of a reversal, because the field has been stable for an unusually long 780,000 years."

Science | AAAS

www.science.org

Here's Nature's own summary article, about the research paper:

Has Earth’s inner core stopped its strange spin?

Earthquake data hint that the inner core stopped rotating faster than the rest of the planet in 2009, but not all researchers agree.

www.nature.com

"Researchers discovered the inner core in 1936, after studying how seismic waves from earthquakes travel through the planet. Changes in the speed of the waves revealed that the planet’s core, which is about 7,000 kilometres wide, consists of a solid centre, made mostly of iron, inside a shell of liquid iron and other elements."

"The liquid outer core essentially decouples the 2,400-kilometre-wide inner core from the rest of the planet, so the inner core can spin at its own pace"

"Still, many questions remain, such as how to reconcile the slow pace of the changes that Yang and Song report with some of the faster changes reported by others. The only way out of the morass is to wait for more earthquakes to happen."

Side note: these articles are examples of where journalists get their info, and what they try to explain to wider audiences. But since they also cover many other areas, they can't specialize in everything. Writing science for the masses "in plain English" is often coupled with innacuracies that cause some people to complain about the journalists. It's a delicate balance. Too accurate: people don't read. Common words: people criticize for being innacurate. So I take it this way: if you see a science article in mainstream media, it's an introduction and invitation to find the source having the real information. And that's what should be criticized, not the main stream article.

 

[Cnorm]

Pretty sure Big Compass is behind this whole scheme to sell more reverse compasses.

 

[Cnorm]

Where do we get our anti-solar wind vaccinations?

Meanwhile, a portion of the population will resort to fish paralyzer enemas or whatever the equivalent of horse paste dewormer is.

 

[Blast it Tom!]

I am not buying the premise of the article that the core "stopped spinning". It makes no sense. I'm calling bullshit.

The solid inner core spins at a different rate than the liquid outer core. If the solid core stopped "spinning" (relative to the liquid outer core?) the friction between the inner and out cores would be enormous. I find that hard to believe. According to basic physics, the solid core would tend to stay in motion (conservation of momentum). It would take an unfathomable amount of force to make it stop or change direction.

One the other hand, the liquid core can change speed more easily because it is fluid. It takes a long time, but an uneven flow of energy from the solid core outward undoubtedly contributes to the liquid core changing speeds. Would it completely change directions (flowing backward against the planetary spin)? Highly doubtful, for the same conservation of momentum reasons. Now, the internal flow of molten iron and nickel of the liquid core could change from North to South (think of the jet stream that fluctuates up and down as a poor proxy) as it rotates with the planet and vice-versa and THAT would flip the magnetic field polarity. During that change in flow, the magnetic field would collapse for a time before it got re-established.

So, I think that what we are reading in the press is either 1) scientists that are poor communicators (very plausible or 2) reporters that don't know basic science and are misinterpreting what the scientists are saying (very plausible ) or 3) both (most likely).

Yow, you save me a lot of typing, at least the conservation of momentum part. You lost me at the flow of molten iron and nickel. Thanks!