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Earth's days are getting longer, science explains why (thefreedomproject.pages.dev)

submitted 3 months ago by marvelous_coyote@lemm.ee to c/science@lemmy.ml

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[–] Twinkletoes@lemm.ee 4 points 3 months ago (2 children)

I could use an extra hour or two each day 🥱

[–] clmbmb@lemmy.dbzer0.com 10 points 3 months ago

your capitalist overlords will make sure you'll work more. don't rush to happiness.

[–] marvelous_coyote@lemm.ee 1 points 3 months ago

Yeah but personally I feel like the days are actually getting shorter not longer

[–] ruk_n_rul@monyet.cc 2 points 3 months ago

This article got it the wrong way with regards to leap seconds. Days getting longer means the earth takes a bit more than 86400s to spin a full day's rotation. That is a surplus, which accumulates over time, and we've added 20 something leap seconds to compensate for it. Days getting longer is what's been happening all this time since 1901.

What scientists have been observing in the past decade are days taking slightly less than 86400s which creates a deficit that accumulates to the negatives that had to be corrected by having a skipped second instead of a leap seconds.

If the negative leap seconds is correct then the days are getting shorter, not longer. If days are getting longer than we're having to insert positive leap seconds as per routine, not a negative one.