Earth’s Core May Be Spinning in the Opposite Direction, According to Study

Earth’s inner core, a hot iron ball the size of Pluto, has stopped spinning in the same direction as the rest of the planet and might even be rotating the other way, according to new research published in the journal Nature Geoscience.

The inner core, situated around 3,100 miles below the Earth’s surface, can spin independently since it floats in the liquid metal of the outer core.

The rotation of the inner core has long been debated by scientists, adding to the controversy brought about by the new study.

The study’s authors, Xiaodong Song and Yi Yang of China’s Peking University analyzed seismic waves from repeating earthquakes over the last six decades in order to track the inner core’s movements.

They found that the inner core’s rotation halted in 2009 and went on to spin in the opposite direction. Scientists believe that the inner core rotates back and forth, like a swing, with one cycle taking about seven decades.

They also predict that the next change in direction will occur in the mid-2040s.

The researchers believe that there may be physical links between all of Earth’s layers, from the inner core to the surface, and that their study can motivate researchers to build models that treat the whole Earth as an integrated dynamic system.

However, experts not involved in the study have expressed caution about the findings, pointing to other theories and the many mysteries that remain about the center of the Earth. (GFB)