Scientists from the University of Alberta are examining the change in the Earth's speed of rotation due to meltwater causing sea levels to rise, as well as shifts in mass from the pole to the equator, which in turn causes the Earth's rotation to slow. These findings allow them to make predictions of future climate change using data gained from the Earth's core.
"In order to fully understand the sea-level change that has occurred in the past century, we need to understand the dynamics of the flow in Earth's core," Mathieu Dumberry, co-author of the study, said in a press release.
Although the shifts in mass from the Earth's pole to the equator slow down the rotation, Dumberry and his team believe these effects are not enough to explain their observed effects of the decrease in the Earth's rotation, noting that the contribution of the Earth's core is a big factor.
As of now, information on the changes in the Earth's core rotation are limited - Dumberry and colleagues are using their experience on the Earth's core-mantle coupling to examine the phenomenon.
"Over the past 3,000 years, the core of the Earth has been speeding up a little, and the mantle-crust on which we stand is slowing down," he said.
Due to the Earth's rotation slowing, Dumberry claims that the length of our days are increasing, and believes that in a century from now our average days will increased by 1.7 milliseconds - an effect that over time will add up and make significant changes in our time.
"This can help to better prepare coastal towns, for example, to cope with climate change," he said. "We're talking billions of dollars of infrastructure here."
The findings were published in the Dec. 11 issue of Science Advances.
