June 22, 2009

Did you know that earth is not completely round?

Earth is not exactly round; it is slightly pear-shaped. The North Pole radius is 1.73 inch (44mm) longer than the South Pole radius. Plates carrying the continents migrate over the earth's surface a few inches per year, about the same speed that a fingernail grows. Which also is about the speed at which the moon is moving away from earth; the moon is moving away at 1-and-a-half inches (3,8cm) per year. The reason probably being that earth is rotating ever slower - 1.4 milliseconds per century slower, some sources calculate 3 milliseconds per century - meaning less gravitational pull on the moon. Earth is also moving away from the sun at 5.9 inches (15cm) per year.
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