Scientists find significant ice melt impacts the Earth’s rotation speed, potentially altering global timekeeping

Climate change’s impact has reached a profound milestone, with scientists now linking melting polar ice directly to the slowing of Earth‘s rotation. This phenomenon could lead to adjustments in how time is measured globally. Duncan Agnew, a geophysicist and professor at the University of California, San Diego, through extensive analysis of satellite imagery data, has brought this significant discovery to light in a study published in the journal Nature.

The mechanics behind this shift involve the redistribution of mass from the poles to the planet’s equator. As polar ice melts and flows into the oceans, the Earth’s mass distribution changes, causing a deceleration in its rotation, akin to a figure skater slowing down as they extend their arms.

This deceleration presents a unique challenge to the measurement of time. The current global time standard, Coordinated Universal Time (UTC), aligns closely with Earth’s rotation. However, variations in rotation speed have occasionally required the addition or subtraction of a leap second to keep time accurately synced with the planet’s rotation.

Agnew’s findings suggest a significant alteration in the timing of these adjustments due to the melting of polar ice. Without this environmental change, calculations indicated the necessity to subtract a second by 2026. Now, with the ongoing ice melt, this correction may be postponed until 2029.

The implications of a slowing Earth rotation extend beyond the realm of horology, affecting satellite operations, computer networks, and financial systems, where precision timing is crucial. This discovery underscores the widespread and profound effects of climate change, illustrating how human activities have altered not just Earth’s climate but its very rotation.

Agnew’s reflections on the matter highlight the unprecedented nature of these changes, emphasizing the tangible impact of climate change on the planet’s fundamental processes. As the global community grapples with these findings, the study serves as a stark reminder of the urgent need to address climate change and mitigate its far-reaching consequences