Tell me more ×
Physics Stack Exchange is a question and answer site for active researchers, academics and students of physics. It's 100% free, no registration required.
up vote -3 down vote favorite

I heard that the Earth rotation is slowing down, but I also heard the Earth's length of day is increasing.

Does the two theories go together or conflict with each other?

share|improve this question

closed as too localized by Qmechanic♦ Jan 3 at 15:17

This question is unlikely to help any future visitors; it is only relevant to a small geographic area, a specific moment in time, or an extraordinarily narrow situation that is not generally applicable to the worldwide audience of the internet. For help making this question more broadly applicable, see the FAQ.

1 Answer

up vote 9 down vote accepted

If you slow down, it will take you longer to type a sentence, won't it?

When the Earth slows down (i.e. the speed of rotation is decreasing), it will take longer to complete a rotation, so the day is longer (i.e. the length is increasing).

share|improve this answer
But according to this question, the Earth's length of day is increasing, while many other places say the rotation of the Earth is decreasing. Does the two theories go together or conflict with each other? – archaeme Jun 4 '11 at 16:13
Logically, what you said should be correct, but if you were correct, there wouldn't be leap seconds. – archaeme Jun 4 '11 at 16:15
The Wikipedia article says it all. Technically there is an additional second. – archaeme Jun 4 '11 at 16:19
Oh, I see. I should've got the logic. – archaeme Jun 4 '11 at 16:23

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged or ask your own question.