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Tonight will be the longest night in Earth's history
msn news ^ | Decembe 21, 2014 | Joseph Stromberg

Posted on 12/21/2014 10:48:25 AM PST by LucyT

Today, you might already know, is the winter solstice. That means for people living in the Northern Hemisphere, it's the longest night of the year.

However, as science blogger Colin Schultz points out, tonight will also be the longest night ever. At any location in the Northern Hemisphere, in other words, tonight's period of darkness will be slightly longer than any other, ever — at least, since the planet started spinning right around the time it was first formed some 4.5 billion years ago.

The reason is that the rotation of the Earth is slowing over time. Every year, scientists estimate, the length of a day increases by about 15 to 25 millionths of a second.

(Excerpt) Read more at msn.com ...


TOPICS: Astronomy; History; Science
KEYWORDS: longnight; moresleep; solstice; wintersolstice
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To: Lurkina.n.Learnin

About the same as yesterday (give or take a few millionths of a second).


41 posted on 12/21/2014 1:22:50 PM PST by smokingfrog ( sleep with one eye open (<o> ---)
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To: editor-surveyor

‘Taken as a unit’ Huh?

Any external energy source big to significantly change the Earth’s angular momentum (like, say an asteroid impact) would also be enough to melt the Earth’s entire crust (and then some). It’s a fairly simple undergrad-level kinematics and thetmodynamics calculation.

This probably did actually happen at least once in Earth’s early history, and possibly many times. Look up ‘Impact Hypothesis’. A Mars-sized body named Theia smacked the Earth off-center and whacked off a chunk that formed the moon. That’s why the moon has a weird combination of terrestrial rocks and nomterrestrial rocks at different Apollo landing sites.

So yeah, that probably did spin things up a bit. :-)


42 posted on 12/21/2014 1:23:21 PM PST by Gideon7
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To: KC_Lion

For the night is dark and full of terrors


43 posted on 12/21/2014 1:25:47 PM PST by King Moonracer (Bad lighting and cheap fabric, that's how you sell clothing.....)
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To: smokingfrog

I was just wondering how much longer the days get every day no that the start getting longer. Is it 1 minute?


44 posted on 12/21/2014 1:26:04 PM PST by Lurkina.n.Learnin (It's a shame nobama truly doesn't care about any of this. Our country, our future, he doesn't care)
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To: Gideon7

“Due to tidal friction, the Earth is slowly trading away its rotational speed for the moon’s increasing orbital distance. Eventually the Earth will become tidally locked with the moon. A day will be the same length as the moon’s orbit, with the same side of the Earth always facing the moon. A solar day then last be a month or longer, and the moon will always be in the same position in the sky.”

And the “idiots” are worried about global warming?


45 posted on 12/21/2014 1:28:58 PM PST by Rebelbase
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To: King Moonracer; TheMom; Tax-chick; Jack Hydrazine
For the night is dark and full of terrors

Doh!

That would have been much better!


46 posted on 12/21/2014 1:42:44 PM PST by KC_Lion (Build the America you want to live in at your address, and keep looking up.- Sarah Palin)
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To: LucyT

Women and minorities hardest hit.

Global warming obviously to blame.

Balderdash. Everyone knows it’s the shortest day evah’ anyway.


47 posted on 12/21/2014 1:57:31 PM PST by Organic Panic
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To: Lurkina.n.Learnin

Over the last 2,500 years, the average earth day has grown longer by between 15 millionths and 25 millionths of a second.


48 posted on 12/21/2014 2:00:26 PM PST by smokingfrog ( sleep with one eye open (<o> ---)
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To: smokingfrog

I must not be making it clear. If we have 10 hrs and 12 minutes of daylight today will we have 10 hrs and 13 minutes tomorrow? More than that? Less?


49 posted on 12/21/2014 2:05:50 PM PST by Lurkina.n.Learnin (It's a shame nobama truly doesn't care about any of this. Our country, our future, he doesn't care)
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To: smokingfrog
Over the last 2,500 years, the average earth day has grown longer by between 15 millionths and 25 millionths of a second.

So, I wasn't just imagining this after all. :-)

50 posted on 12/21/2014 2:06:27 PM PST by windsorknot
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To: LucyT

Bush’s fault.


51 posted on 12/21/2014 2:07:27 PM PST by oldbill
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To: LucyT

So much extra time on my hands.


52 posted on 12/21/2014 2:08:54 PM PST by mware
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To: PUGACHEV

No, because water was a lot lighter back then.

See, when the water moved from the poles to the equator, the earth not being a perfect sphere, the equatorial water was farther from the center of the earth, thus less affected by gravity. So the water was lighter.

OK, OK. It’s a stretch, but it’s as valid as anything Algore says, so I’m sticking with it. Don’t confuse me with science.


53 posted on 12/21/2014 2:11:19 PM PST by oldbill
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To: LucyT

I’ve noticed that ever since Obama took over, the days just seem to be getting longer and longer.


54 posted on 12/21/2014 2:14:40 PM PST by oldbill
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To: editor-surveyor

Does the world spin 1/3 faster? I always take things literally with a spiritual meaning. Which is why I always ask so many questions. Merry Christmas, by the way!


55 posted on 12/21/2014 2:34:19 PM PST by huldah1776
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To: huldah1776

The “days are shortened” by Yehova interrupting Satan’s plan, and taking his elect out for the marriage supper of the Lamb.

You have to know that all the rest left on Earth to watch this spectacle will be soiling their drawers!

.


56 posted on 12/21/2014 2:39:33 PM PST by editor-surveyor (Freepers: Not as smart as I'd hoped they'd be)
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To: editor-surveyor

;-) post-tribber.


57 posted on 12/21/2014 2:41:48 PM PST by huldah1776
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To: Lurkina.n.Learnin

It would take around 200 days before you would need to add a minute.


58 posted on 12/21/2014 3:00:27 PM PST by smokingfrog ( sleep with one eye open (<o> ---)
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To: PUGACHEV

Move all the fat people to the polar regions and the earth will slow down.

I think we may have killed too many whales or something.


59 posted on 12/21/2014 3:05:31 PM PST by smokingfrog ( sleep with one eye open (<o> ---)
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To: smokingfrog

LOL. Lets get on the same page here. I’m not talking about milliseconds. I would never notice them without fancy gadgets. After the solstice the days start getting longer until the summer solstice. I was wondering how much the length of a day increases from the previous day.


60 posted on 12/21/2014 3:09:13 PM PST by Lurkina.n.Learnin (It's a shame nobama truly doesn't care about any of this. Our country, our future, he doesn't care)
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