NASA Claims: China Could Slow Earth’s Rotation With a Single Action

Samir Sebti Published on January 3, 2025

Collected at: https://dailygalaxy.com/2025/01/nasa-claims-china-could-slow-earths-rotation-with-a-single-action/

The Three Gorges Dam in China is a jaw-dropping feat of modern engineering, famous for its hydroelectric power. But there’s a lesser-known twist: it might be subtly tweaking Earth’s rotation. According to NASA, the sheer amount of  water held by this massive dam could slightly throw off our planet’s rotational balance. While this change is tiny, it serves as a powerful reminder of just how much we can impact natural systems.

What Makes the Three Gorges Dam Tick?

Sitting on the Yangtze River in Hubei province, China, the Three Gorges Dam claims the title of the largest hydroelectric power station on the planet. It took almost 18 years to build and was finished up in 2012. This gigantic structure stretches 2,335 meters long and stands 185 meters high, holding up to a whopping 40 cubic kilometers of water—that’s about 40 trillion liters!

The main goals here are generating electricity and controlling floods, but there’s more to it than meets the eye. As water piles up behind this massive dam, it shifts a huge mass that might even tweak Earth’s spin by changing how mass is spread out.

Can We Really Change Earth’s Rotation?

This whole idea comes from physics principles about mass distribution and something called moment of inertia. It got attention after NASA published a study in 2005 about the effects of the big earthquake and tsunami in the Indian Ocean back in 2004. That event shifted Earth’s mass and tweaked its moment of inertia, making days shorter by about 2.68 microseconds.

Dr. Benjamin Fong Chao from NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center says that similar stuff happens when humans do big things like filling up giant dams. Moving so much water can theoretically nudge Earth’s pole by around 2 centimeters and stretch out a day by roughly 0.06 microseconds.

What Does This Mean for Our Planet?

Building big dams isn’t the only way we’re messing with Earth’s spin—climate change plays a part too (think polar ice melting). Natural forces like the Moon’s pull have been slowing down our planet’s spin over thousands of years.

But throwing huge structures like the Three Gorges Dam into the mix adds another layer to these influences. It’s a stark reminder that what we do can amplify natural processes that keep our world ticking.

Could We Fix These Tiny Time Twists?

To deal with these small changes in Earth’s spinning speed, some experts suggest using something called a “negative leap second.” This would mean occasionally dropping a second from atomic clocks to keep them lined up with Earth’s slightly altered pace.

Sure, this sounds minor, but it points out how important it is to keep an eye on things and adapt as our actions continue reshaping global systems.

Are Big Dams Changing More Than Just Landscapes?

China isn’t flying solo when it comes to tapping into hydroelectric power through big dams—countries like the United States, Brazil, and India are also building massive projects that similarly shift Earth’s mass around.

Looking at all these projects together worldwide could mean their overall effect is bigger than we thought. This brings up serious questions about sustainable development and what they really mean for our planet long-term.

NASA’s insights into the Three Gorges Dam reveal a complex web linking human actions with nature. Even tiny changes remind us of our duty to care for our environment. As we keep constructing monumental feats or tackling climate challenges head-on, focusing on sustainability becomes vital—not just for saving ecosystems but also for keeping essential planetary functions intact for life on Earth.