Pumping groundwater, redistribution has changed Earth’s spin

H2O IQ editor note: this article cites the scientific paper covered in our preceding post.

According to a recent study published in the journal Geophysical Research Letters, humans have caused the Earth to tilt approximately 80 centimeters (31.5 inches) eastward between 1993 and 2010 by pumping and relocating large amounts of groundwater.

The study explores the impact of groundwater redistribution on the Earth’s rotational pole, which refers to the point around which the planet rotates. Changes in the distribution of water on Earth affect its mass distribution and consequently alter the rotational pole’s position. This phenomenon, known as polar motion, is analogous to adding weight to a spinning top, thus causing it to spin differently.

“Earth’s rotational pole actually changes a lot,” said study lead author Ki-Weon Seo, a geophysicist at Seoul National University. “Our study shows that among climate-related causes, the redistribution of groundwater actually has the largest impact on the drift of the rotational pole.”

How the research was conducted

In a study from 2016, scientists first discovered that water has the ability to modify the Earth’s rotation, but until now, the specific contribution of groundwater to this rotational change had not been explored. In the current study, the researchers employed models to simulate the observed changes in the Earth’s […]

Full article: www.earth.com