The inner Earth changes the direction in which it rotates

Something seems to be going on in the Earth’s inner core that researchers can’t fully explain. But it looks sexy.

There are several different theories about our planet’s inner core. Because not much is known about the inner core and it has not yet been fully explored. We will own Chinese researchers in New study He discovers that the inner core has stopped rotating in the same direction as the rest of the Earth. Studies show that it can even turn the other way in the moment, According to a report by Agence France-Presse.

But what is the inner core actually? It’s kind of a hot iron ball the size of that Former planet Pluto. It’s round 5000 km under the surface on which we live. You can think of it as one, so to speak planet within a planet. This can spin independently because it floats in an outer core made of liquid metal.

Data analysis of seismic waves

Researchers Xiaodong Song and Yi Yang from Peking University In China has seismic waves recently 6 decades compared to each other to track the movements of the inner core.

Why seismic waves? Measurements of these very waves, generated by frequent earthquakes, are the only clues to what is happening in the inner core. Because you can’t “look in”.

According to Chinese researchers, an analysis of the data has yielded startling results: this is how rotation in the Earth’s interior is indeed supposed to be. 2009 They all stopped, and then suddenly started turning in the other direction.

Trend change every 35 years

But this is not the first time, according to a report by Agence France-Presse, citing research published by Chinese scientists. This wants to find that change of direction assumed every 35 years Happen or occur. So the full cycle will last 70 years.

Already a start The seventies It is said that the inner core has changed direction for the first time and the Chinese expect it 2040 You can do it again.

We hope that our study will motivate some other researchers to test how one treats the entire Earth as an integrated dynamic system.NatureGeosciencePublished academic paper. Because the two believe that the inner core is also connected to the other layers of the earth. But how exactly, they themselves do not know.

Community praise for broad data

The research work of the Chinese is highly respected in the scientific community. However, not all researchers are completely convinced of the results. Many believe that the inner core rotates. But opinions differ on how often and how quickly.

John Vidal, a seismologist University of Southern California (USA). However, there are still many mysteries about the inner core and other scientific models.

Fidel himself is convinced that the inner core is changing faster and changing direction every 6 years. He had data from Late 60’s and early 70’s Analyze it.

Other models, which are also based on data analysis, want to show that only Earth’s inner core Between 2001 and 2013 She moved on and changed and she hasn’t since. On the other hand, other researchers believe that the timing of the movement is less frequent than what the Chinese supposedly discovered.

The big picture is missing

So scientists aren’t going to be quiet anytime soon regarding theories about the inner core and its spin. Nobody knows if the data used is really suitable for general picture To give and what is the role of the Earth and its entire system different layers Specifically play. It is also possible to conceive of another iron ball in the inner core. The researchers are convinced that figuring this out “could take decades.”