It seems incredible, but it is really happening: The earth is accelerating. In three precise dates of the summer 2025 – July 9th, July 22nd And August 5th – Our planet will make a ride on itself slightly faster than usual. Each day will be shorter than about 1.5 milliseconds.
No, we will not notice with the naked eye. But this tiny waste of time It is enough to send the most precise watches in the world in crisis and to make those who work with satellites, GPS, electric networks and communication systems tremble.
And the point is that Nobody really knows what this acceleration is causing.
Time is shortened: why are scientists so worried?
The earth has always turned. It is a legacy of the rotary movement that gave rise to our solar system billions of years ago. But that rotation, over time, It was slowing down. During the time of dinosaurs, a day lasted 23 hours. Even earlier, he stopped at 7pm. Today we know that the duration of one day is on average 86,400 secondsbut it may vary very little, depending on how the earth’s mass is distributed.
To measure these micro-clile they think about it Atomic watchesvery precise tools in use since 1950. Thanks to them we know that, in July 2024the earth has established a record: it completed its rotation 1.66 milliseconds earlier than expected. Another record could come the August 5, 2025when the day should be shortened to 1.51 milliseconds.
It might seem irrelevant, but for our hyperconnected world. Positioning systems (such as GPS), satellites, banking services and electrical networks they must be synchronized to the millisecond. And when the earth suddenly accelerates all this balance can jump.
So far, to correct any delays, a second intercalary. But if the earth continues to turn furter, one might have to remove a second. It would be the first “Second negative” of history.
All hypotheses on the pitch
But what is really going on under our feet?
In fact, the small changes in the terrestrial rotation are normal. For example, in summer, when The trees put the leavesthe mass moves slightly upwards and can slow down the rotation of the planet. An effect similar to that of a skater that opens the arms to curb.
Also the windsthe ocean currents and even earthquakes they can have an impact. The 2011 earthquake in Japan, for example, shortened the day of a fraction of microsecond. And then there is the Moonwhich with its irregular orbit sometimes temporarily influences the speed of the earth, especially when it is more north or south of the equator.
The three dates of this summer in which the day will be shorter coincide with these particular lunar alignments. But the problem is that These effects are already known and calculated. What is not back is the global tendency to accelerationstarted in 2020 and still in progress.
A study of the Nasa found that, between 2000 and 2018, human activity has moved so much water and ice from stretch the days about 1.33 milliseconds every century. But now the opposite is happening: the days yes shortenand quickly. Because of this Scientists are perplexedand a little worried.
Time is no longer what it once was: and now?
What today seems just a scientific curiosity could soon become a real problem. Our company is based on A very rigid time systemthat of Universal coordinated time (UTC). It is from there that the times of all over the world derive, and it is on the base that work GPS, planes, bags, apps, intelligent traffic lights and even power plants.
If time begins to slide away even a few milliseconds, Errors accumulate. And that’s why, if the earth continues to run, you will have to make a historical decision: remove a secondfor the first time since we started counting them with such precision.
For now, nobody touched the watches. But the mere fact that you talk about it makes us understand one thing:.
What we consider “normal” – the duration of a day, the sunshine of the sun, the time of the tram – It depends on a fragile balancewhich moves, changes, escapes our control.
And the fact that Nobody really knows why The earth is accelerating … well, it should make us reflect.
