Earth Spun Faster, Broke Record For the Shortest Day – But It's Not Good News

A representational image of Earth from space.

(Photo: iStockphoto)

On Sunday, 31 July, earth completed a full spin 1.59 milliseconds faster than the standard 24 hours, breaking its own record for the shortest day. This means the day was shorter than 24 hours.

Reports suggest that the speed of rotation for the planet has been increasing and scientists are not yet certain of the reasons that have led to this.

The faster the earth spins the shorter a day will be and the slower the earth spins, the longer the day.

The earth has been speeding up and the last shortest day was recorded as 19 July 2020 – it was 1.47 milliseconds shorter.

According to The Independent, if the Earth continues to spin at an increasing rate it could lead to the introduction of negative leap seconds, in a bid to keep the rate that the Earth orbits the Sun consistent with the measurement from atomic clocks.

(This story contains inputs from The Independent.)