Today was the shortest day ever recorded, even shorter days are coming

Earth recorded its shortest day in history, scientists say, and even shorter days are coming. This summer, Earth is spinning unusually fast. Our planet completed a full rotation in slightly under 24 hours, 1.3 milliseconds faster than the standard. According to the International Earth Rotation and Reference Systems Service (IERS), July 22 and August 5 are expected to be similarly short.

The reason is a complex interplay of geophysical forces. Experts point to a shift in the Earth's core, climate change-induced glacial melting, seismic activity, and even strong ocean tides as contributors to this acceleration. The phenomenon is known as “Chandler wobble”, a small irregular movement of Earth's geographical poles.

“It’s a reminder,” said a geophysicist from the International Earth Rotation Service, “that our planet is not a static ball but a dynamic system constantly in flux.”

Some Scientists say, ‘blame the moon’

Scientists say this is also a result of the moon's position; when it is closer to the Moon, it rotates faster, when it's further away from the Moon, it slows down. The moon has always affected our Earth's spin through tidal braking, where our Moon's gravitational pull causes our planet to bulge. This deformation also slowly pulls away momentum from the Earth's rotation, causing our planet to slow down by 2 milliseconds every century.

“It’s not a huge change in the Earth’s rotation that’s going to lead to some catastrophe or anything, but it is something notable,” said Duncan Agnew, a geophysicist at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography at the University of California, San Diego.

While the difference might be imperceptible to our human life, it resulted in IERS skipping a leap second in 2025, and may have to take back one leap second in 2029. But it is apparent that our planet has slowed down a little bit