Since humans gained the ability to ask questions, their hours and days no longer consumed by finding mammoth meat and not being killed by something with bigger, sharper teeth than us, we have wondered at the immortal questions of the universe -what makes the sun rise? What makes the tides come in? – concocting all manner of theories and speculations as to the nature of existence, some of them solid and correct, scientifically informed theories, others completely baseless, superstitious hooey.
These soon gave way to questions about all manner of things, particularly in certain circles of interest. Questions such as the infamous questions regarding the sound of a tree falling in an empty forest, or the sound of one hand clapping or who would win in a fight between Superman and The Hulk, or even Nikola Tesla and Thomas Edison to get a bit more historical about it.
Somewhere between these opposite forms of inquiry are questions that, while technically scientifically based, are still so academic as to border on the rhetorical. Among this hybrid group is the line of inquiry under investigation today. What would happen if the earth stopped spinning for 42 seconds?
A whole lotta shakin’
One of the first and most obvious effects of a sudden time stop, on the usual business of global Rotation, would be significant erosion to the earth’s crust. Not only would this be likely to upset the town baseball game, it would also turn the Earth into a perfect sphere for the duration of the time out.
A chance of wind
We tend to think of the Earth as one solid thing. In the images from space, it looks like a big blue marble. Sure, most of us know that there is an atmosphere but how many actually take this well established, scientific fact into account when picturing the Earth? If the main part of the Earth, which is most definitely a solid, ceased its rotation, the atmosphere in all its many levels and consisting of what qualifies as a gas, would not. It would just keep on its merry way at more or less the speed of the Earth’s rotation. Some 1,670 kph (around 1,000 mph), strong enough to blow a house across the street but not to send a human into orbit. Not even if they jumped.
Another result of the Earth going circular would be a gigantic tsunami (or ‘tidal wave’ for those of you born before 2000), in many of the planet’s largest water sources, including but not necessarily limited to, the Pacific Ocean. Don’t fret however, as the massively destructive mountain of water will more than likely reverse when the rotation starts up again.
(Almost) another minute in the day
Many people have complained that there just is not enough time in the day to do everything that needs to be done. Well they should just be hoping for the Earth to take a little breather because when it all starts up again, what is left of it, will have a whole 42 seconds added to the day!