Earth’s solid core is preparing for a reverse spin – the consequences are unknown

the Rotation of its solid inner core a land It is estimated that recently I stopped And the kernel seems to be preparing for this Reverse its movement In the opposite direction, according to Chinese scientists.

Based on the indications so far, the reverse spin is likely to be completed within the next decade, while possible impacts on the planet’s surface will be investigated.

The researchers, led by Peking University seismologist Xiaodong Song, who published the paper in the journal Nature Geoscience, based their estimate on analysis of seismic waves from nearly identical earthquakes that penetrated the Earth’s core following similar “paths” from the 1960s until today. .

Analysis concluded that after the decade 1970the inner heart was spinning Faster and faster eastwardeven between 2009-2011 Its rotation appears to have stopped, possibly due to the imminent reversal of its rotational direction. The researchers estimate that the imminent new shift in the core’s rotation in the opposite direction, this time to the west, is part of a possible six- to seven-decade cycle (a theory that needs confirmation).

Based on this model, the core is expected to rotate westward with increasing speed until the 2040s, when it will stop and reverse its eastward motion again.

inner core – which has an estimated radius of 1,220 km and consists mainly of iron and nickel with temperatures similar to the sun It is separated from the rest of the solid Earth by its liquid outer core, which allows it to rotate differently than the planet itself. The rotation of the inner core is affected by the magnetic field generated by the outer molten core and is balanced by the gravitational effects of the mantle, the middle layer of the Earth between the core and crust. How fast the nucleus rotates and how much it changes remains a matter of scientific debate.

It is also under discussion, and in what way The direction of rotation of the inner core Related Geophysical changes at the surface of our planet, such as the magnetic field and the length of the day, where interaction is assumed.

With information from APE