Climate Change, Sea Level Rise and Earth’s Rotation

Sea Level: Hands on a Skater

Context

A study published in JGR Solid Earth suggests that climate-change-induced redistribution of water and ice is influencing Earth’s rotational speed and gradually increasing the length of a day.

Key Highlights

1. Melting glaciers and polar ice sheets redistribute Earth’s mass.
2. Researchers compared the process to a spinning skater slowing down after extending arms outward.
3. Climate change is increasing the length of Earth’s day at one of the fastest rates in millions of years.
4. Oceans, atmosphere, Moon and Earth’s interior collectively influence rotational behaviour.

Key Facts

• Earth’s rotation depends on mass distribution around the rotational axis.
• Climate change is increasing day length by nearly 1.33 milliseconds per century.
• Greenland and Antarctic ice melt contribute to sea-level rise and mass redistribution.
• The Moon’s gravitational pull also affects Earth’s rotational speed.
• It would take millions of years for climate-driven changes alone to increase a day by one second.