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Wild New Paper Suggests Earth's Tectonic Activity Has an Unseen Source
sciencealert.com ^ | 26 JANUARY 2022 | DAVID NIELD

Posted on 01/27/2022 12:39:07 PM PST by BenLurkin

Earth is far from a solid mass of rock. The outer layer of our planet – known as the lithosphere – is made up of more than 20 tectonic plates; as these gargantuan slates glide about the face of the planet, we get the movement of continents, and interaction at the boundaries, not least of which is the rise and fall of entire mountain ranges and oceanic trenches.

Yet there's some debate over what causes these giant slabs of rock to move around in the first place.

Amongst the many hypotheses put forward over the centuries, convection currents generated by the planet's hot core have been discussed as an explanation, but it's doubtful whether this effect would produce enough energy.

A newly published study looks to the skies for an explanation. Noting that force rather than heat is most commonly used to move large objects, the authors suggest that the interplay of gravitational forces from the Sun, Moon, and Earth could be responsible for the movement of Earth's tectonic plates.

Key to the hypothesis is the barycenter – the center of mass of an orbiting system of bodies, in this case that of Earth and the Moon. This is the point around which our Moon actually orbits, and it's not directly in the center of mass of our planet, which we call the geocenter.

Instead, the location of the barycenter within Earth changes over the course of the month by as much as 600 kilometers (373 miles) because the Moon's orbit around Earth is elliptical due to our Sun's gravitational pull.

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


TOPICS: Astronomy; Science; Weird Stuff
KEYWORDS: astronomy; bartender; catastrophism; centerofmass; earthquakes; geocenter; geology; lunarorigin; mass; orbitalmechanics; platetectonics; potsdamgravitypotato; science; tectonics
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To: 43north

Not denying the moon may have effects but a Moon’s perigee and apogee are not always synced with full moons. The moon at perigee is 224 thousand miles away and at apogee it is 251 thousand miles away. When you have a full moon synced at perigee, then that is a supermoon and at apogee that is a micromoon. I think the moon has varying effects on the Earth and the inhabitants depending on it’s orbit and the earths spin/time of day in that region of Earth that the moon is closest to as it hits perigee, no matter what “phase” the moon is in.

It would be more interesting to compare dates of Earthquakes and eruptions with those dates when the moon is in exact perigee over those regions the moon is directly over during the Earth’s daily spin cycle as it hits the nearest point and the pulls away in its orbit. The earth will also be spinning under and vectoring sideways away from the lunar pull and away from that perigee point. If the vectoring forces hit and concentrate on certain fault lines, then I could see Earthquakes happening. There are nights that working in the hospital and things are crazy, we ask about if it is a Full moon, but then we realize it isn’t. However Lunar Perigee might be driving people mad, no matter what the phase of the moon happens to be.


41 posted on 01/27/2022 4:38:48 PM PST by mdmathis6 (Democrat Biden...we are sore...we don't want no Ukraine war!)
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To: 43north

Good posting.

Also relates to origin of the term “lunatic” for someone affected by the full Moon.


42 posted on 01/28/2022 2:54:39 AM PST by octex
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To: BenLurkin; 75thOVI; Abathar; agrace; aimhigh; Alice in Wonderland; AnalogReigns; AndrewC; ...
Thanks BenLurkin.
[snip] Noting that force rather than heat is most commonly used to move large objects, the authors suggest that the interplay of gravitational forces from the Sun, Moon, and Earth could be responsible for the movement of Earth's tectonic plates. [/snip]


KEYWORDS: lunarorigin; potsdamgravitypotato

43 posted on 01/28/2022 10:32:45 AM PST by SunkenCiv (Imagine an imaginary menagerie manager imagining managing an imaginary menagerie.)
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Potsdam Gravity Potato and Lunar Origin keywords in sorted lists:

44 posted on 01/28/2022 10:35:46 AM PST by SunkenCiv (Imagine an imaginary menagerie manager imagining managing an imaginary menagerie.)
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To: BenLurkin

Spice worms.

5.56mm


45 posted on 01/28/2022 10:48:06 AM PST by M Kehoe (Quid Pro Joe and the Ho need to go.)
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To: Mr. K; BenLurkin; SunkenCiv; blam; All

Moon, no magnetic field, so bye, bye water and atmosphere.

Actually I think it was decided some time ago that because Mars is smaller and has less gravity that the escape velocity is less than earth’s so that is why the water and air are gone. I remember reading this at least 50 years ago.


46 posted on 01/28/2022 12:10:46 PM PST by gleeaikin (,Question authority!)
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To: M Kehoe

Gonna need a bigger caliber than 5.56mm for Spice Worms.


47 posted on 01/28/2022 5:30:24 PM PST by Redcitizen
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To: gleeaikin
There's no reason all bodies form with water as a component, but that's the conventional bias. Also, the presence or absence of a magnetic field has nothing to do with the retention of atmosphere or water. Lastly, the Moon used to have a magnetic field, or formed in the presence of a magnetic field stronger than that of the Earth's.

48 posted on 01/29/2022 7:25:17 AM PST by SunkenCiv (Imagine an imaginary menagerie manager imagining managing an imaginary menagerie.)
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To: SunkenCiv; Mr. K

I was responding to Comment #18, and accidentally wrote Moon instead of Mars. So my contention was that magnetic field had nothing to do with lack of water and air on Mars, it was because of escape velocity.


49 posted on 01/29/2022 9:38:12 AM PST by gleeaikin (,Question authority!)
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To: BenLurkin
Link to the paper/book chapter for anyone who wants to geek out...

Links of planetary energetics to moon size, orbit, and planet spin: A new mechanism for plate tectonics

50 posted on 01/29/2022 9:41:43 AM PST by mewzilla (God bless Canada's Freedom Truckers!)
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To: gleeaikin

The Magnetic Field is what keeps the solar wind from blowing away The atmosphere and water. Not Gravity.


51 posted on 01/29/2022 10:43:48 AM PST by Mr. K (No consequence of repealing obamacare is worse than obamacare itself)
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To: Mr. K

I was talking about Mars, not the sun.


52 posted on 01/29/2022 12:24:57 PM PST by gleeaikin (,Question authority!)
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To: gleeaikin

The solar wind is what blew away the water and atmosphere on Mars.

Because Mars no longer has a magnetic field.

The escape velocity just determines how easy it is for the solar wind to do that.


53 posted on 01/30/2022 7:02:25 AM PST by Mr. K (No consequence of repealing obamacare is worse than obamacare itself)
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To: SunkenCiv

54 posted on 01/30/2022 7:43:48 AM PST by Abathar (Proudly posting without reading the article carefully since 2004)
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To: Abathar

Both what?


55 posted on 01/30/2022 3:16:11 PM PST by SunkenCiv (Imagine an imaginary menagerie manager imagining managing an imaginary menagerie.)
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To: SunkenCiv

Heat and the gravitational pull together, symbiotic.


56 posted on 01/31/2022 4:12:47 AM PST by Abathar (Proudly posting without reading the article carefully since 2004)
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