The Earthquakes Did What?

**taps mic**

Been awhile, huh?

I’m not sure if anyone has been noticing, but these earthquakes around the world have had some astronomical effects. Obviously prayers go out to anyone who has lost their lives or have family affected in Chile, Haiti and Taiwan (yeah, a 6.4 quake hit there recently as well). Turn to any news station and you’ll see the devastation. You’ll see what used to be buildings only reduced to a mound of rumble. Sometimes with people trapped underneath. You see the survivors sleeping on the street crying for change. All powerful images which hit you in some shape, form or fashion.

But did you know it changed the Earth’s rotation and actually SHORTENED the day?

The 8.8 earthquake in Latin America last weekend has caused considerable changes throughout the world. Not only was there a tsunami some 6,700 miles away on the other side of the ocean, but the force of the earthquake actually caused the earth to shift three inches off her axis.

Three inches doesn’t sound like all that much, but it is enough of a shift to shorten our days. The earth’s rotation is what determines how long our day is. With the shift, the earth sped up 1.26 microseconds. This means that our day is actually shorter than it was last week at this time. It’s kind of eerie when you think about it – how one natural disaster can change the earth so much.

In short, you probably won’t feel the change of the earth’s rotation. 1.26 microseconds is an unfathomably short period of time. In the time it takes you to read one word, it will have passed.

Crazy right? Scientists believe this won’t effect the climate, but it does help you put things in perspective on how truly powerful these quakes have been. We here at SeeFurtherThanIAm.com continue to pray for in the disaster areas and the families who continue to worry about them.