What would happen if the Earth stopped spinning?The probability for such an event is practically zero in the next few billion years. If the Earth stopped spinning suddenly, the atmosphere would still be in motion with the Earth's original 1100 mile per hour rotation speed at the equator. All of the land masses would be scoured clean of anything not attached to bedrock. This means rocks, topsoil, trees, buildings, your pet dog, and so on, would be swept away into the atmosphere. Show If the process happened gradually over billions of years, the situation would be very different, and it is this possibility which is the most likely as the constant torquing of the Sun and Moon upon the Earth finally reaches it's conclusion. If the rotation period slowed to 1 rotation every 365 days a condition called 'sun synchronous', every spot in the Earth would have permanent daytime or nighttime all year long. This is similar to the situation on the Moon where for 2 weeks the front-side is illuminated by the Sun, and for 2 weeks the back side is illuminated. This situation for the Earth is not the condition of 'stopped' rotation, but it is as close as the laws of physics will let the Earth get. If it stopped spinning completely...not even once every 365 days, you would get 1/2 year daylight and 1/2 year nightime. During daytime for 6 months, the surface temperature would depend on your latitude, being far hotter that it is now at the equator than at the poles where the light rays are more slanted and heating efficiency is lower. This long-term temperature gradient would alter the atmospheric wind circulation pattern so that the air would move from the equator to the poles rather than in wind systems parallel to the equator like they are now. The yearly change in the Sun's position in the sky would now be just its seasonal motion up and down the sky towards the south due to the orbit of the Earth and its axial tilt. As you moved along constant lines of Earth latitude, you would see the elevation of the Sun increase or decrease in the sky just as we now see the elevation of the Sun change from a single point on the Earth due to the Earth's daily rotation. For example, if you were at a latitude of +24 degrees North in the Summer and at a longitude where the Sun was exactly overhead, it would slide gradually to the horizon as Fall approached, but since the Sun has moved 90 degrees in its orbit, it would now be due west. Then as we approach Winter, you would now be located on the dark side of the Earth, and would have to travel in longitude to a location 180 degrees around the Earth to see the Sun 1/2 way up the sky because in the Winter, the Sun is 48 degrees south of its summer location in the sky. It's a little confusing, but if you use a globe of the Earth and orient it the right way, you can see how all this works out. As for other effects, presumably the magnetic field of the Earth is generated by a dynamo effect that involves its rotation. If the Earth stopped rotating, it's magnetic field would no longer be regenerated and it would decay away to some low, residual value due to the very small component which is 'fossilized' in its iron-rich rocks. There would be no more 'northern lights' and the Van Allen radiation belts would probably vanish, as would our protection from cosmic rays and other high-energy particles. This is a significant biohazard. Copyright 1997 Dr. Sten Odenwald Return to Ask the Astronomer.
 Earth is steadily spinning like a top, even if we can't see, touch, hear or feel it. So, what would happen if Earth were to abruptly stop rotating? If the spinning were to stop, the angular momentum of every object on Earth would rip the surface apart, resulting in a really, really bad day. "This is just a thought experiment," said James Zimbelman, senior geologist emeritus at the Smithsonian's National Air and Space Museum in Washington, D.C. "There is no natural force that would stop the Earth from spinning. That is part of why the planet has been spinning since it formed, which is pretty impressive." Related: How fast does the Earth move? Put a spin on itEarth makes one complete rotation on its axis every 23 hours, 56 minutes and 4.09053 seconds. This translates to land at the equator moving at about 1,100 mph (1,770 km/h), with rotational velocity decreasing to zero at the poles, according to Zimbelman. If the planet were to come to an abrupt halt, the angular momentum imparted to the air, water and even rocks along the equator would keep moving at this speed of 1,100 mph. The movement would scour the surface while ripping it apart and sending shards into the upper regions of the atmosphere and outer space. But what is angular momentum? Let's take a step back. Linear momentum is the product of an object's mass and its velocity (direction and speed). A passenger in a moving car that stops abruptly will continue to move forward due to linear momentum. Ouch. Angular momentum is a rotational analog to linear momentum. It is the product of the moment of inertia (the rotational force needed to rotate mass) and angular velocity. A quarterback imparts angular momentum to a football as it is heft through the air toward the wide receiver. "One of the fundamentals of physics is the conservation of angular momentum," Zimbelman told Live Science. "Once something is spinning, you have to exert the same force [in the opposite direction] to stop it from spinning." But all would not be not lost if the Earth were to stop spinning. Regroup, reform, accreteAccording to Zimbelman, the bits and pieces that broke away from the surface would regain some spin as Earth and its remnants continued on their path around the sun. Eventually, the planet's gravitational pull would draw the halo of fragments back with an unexpected effect. "What [Isaac] Newton helped us figure out with classical mechanics is that the pieces accumulating and moving closer together would release some of their own energy, heating things up," Zimbelman said. Think of it like a meteorite streaking across the sky. The remnants that ended up in the far reaches of the atmosphere and outer space would be drawn to the surface by the planet's gravitational pull, and they would release energy upon impact. The constant bombardment of these bits and pieces would liquefy the crust into a molten "ocean of rock," Zimbelman said. Eventually, colliding fragments would be reabsorbed into the molten sea through a process called accretion. According to Zimbelman, the rapid and destructive transition would also vaporize most of the water on the planet's surface. While most of this vaporized water would be lost, some might be incorporated into newly solidified minerals, like olivine. Finally, not all of the fragments would be reabsorbed through accretion. Some of the planetary bits would be swept up by the moon's gravitational pull, bombarding the nearby satellite and creating countless more craters across its surface. Originally published on Live Science. As a scientist, Stacy Kish has focused her research on Earth science, specifically oceanography and climate change. As a science writer, she explores all aspects of science from mites living books to noctilucent clouds, stretching across the mesopause. She finds every aspect of science intriguing and considers a good day to be one where she learns something new and unexpected. In her free time, she works on perfecting new cake recipes to share with others. What would happen if the Earth slowly stopped rotating?Without centrifugal force, the oceans would move towards the poles, dropping ocean depth by 8km around the equator. Since this is less than the depth of the ocean there, Earth's water would be divided into two huge polar oceans separated by a belt of land in the middle.
What will happen if the Earth stops rotating Class 6?If the Earth stops rotating and revolving, there will be no change of seasons and no day and night.
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What would happen if the earth stops rotating
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