From the course of school astronomy, which is included in the curriculum of geography lessons, we all know about the existence of the solar system and its 8 planets. They "circle" around the Sun, but not everyone knows that there are celestial bodies with retrograde rotation. What planet rotates in the opposite direction? In fact, there are several. These are Venus, Uranus and a recently discovered planet located on the far side of Neptune.
retrograde rotation
The movement of each planet is subject to the same order, and the solar wind, meteorites and asteroids, colliding with it, make it rotate around its axis. However, gravity plays the main role in the movement of celestial bodies. Each of them has its own inclination of the axis and orbit, the change of which affects its rotation. Planets move counterclockwise with an orbital inclination of -90° to 90°, while celestial bodies with an angle of 90° to 180° are referred to as bodies with retrograde rotation.
Axis Tilt
As for the tilt of the axis, for retrogrades this value is 90 ° -270 °. For example, Venus has an axial tilt of 177.36°, which prevents it from moving counterclockwise, and the recently discovered space object Nika has an inclination of 110°. It should be noted that the influence of the mass of a celestial body on its rotation has not been fully studied.
Fixed Mercury
Along with retrograde, there is a planet in the solar system that practically does not rotate - this is Mercury, which has no satellites. The reverse rotation of the planets is not such a rare phenomenon, but most often it occurs outside the solar system. There is no universally accepted model of retrograde rotation today, which enables young astronomers to make amazing discoveries.
Causes of retrograde rotation
There are several reasons why planets change their course of motion:
- collision with larger space objects
- change in orbital inclination
- tilt change
- changes in the gravitational field (intervention of asteroids, meteorites, space debris, etc.)
Also, the reason for the retrograde rotation may be the orbit of another cosmic body. There is an opinion that the reason for the reverse motion of Venus could be the solar tides, which slowed down its rotation.
planet formation
Almost every planet during its formation was subjected to many asteroid impacts, as a result of which its shape and radius of the orbit changed. An important role is also played by the fact of the close formation of a group of planets and a large accumulation of space debris, as a result of which the distance between them is minimal, which, in turn, leads to a violation of the gravitational field.
The theory of the world as a geocentric system was repeatedly criticized and questioned in the old days. It is known that Galileo Galilei worked on the proof of this theory. It is to him that the phrase that went down in history belongs: “And yet it spins!”. But still, it was not he who managed to prove this, as many people think, but Nicolaus Copernicus, who in 1543 wrote a treatise on the movement of celestial bodies around the Sun. Surprisingly, despite all this evidence, about the circular motion of the Earth around a huge star, there are still open questions in theory about the reasons that prompt it to this movement.
Reasons for the move
The Middle Ages are over, when people considered our planet to be motionless, and no one disputes its movements. But the reasons why the Earth is heading on a path around the Sun are not known for certain. Three theories have been put forward:
- inert rotation;
- magnetic fields;
- exposure to solar radiation.
There are others, but they do not stand up to scrutiny. It is also interesting that the question: “In which direction does the Earth rotate around a huge celestial body?” Is also not correct enough. The answer to it has been received, but it is accurate only with respect to the generally accepted guideline.
The sun is a huge star around which life is concentrated in our planetary system. All these planets move around the Sun in their orbits. The earth moves in the third orbit. Studying the question: “In which direction does the Earth rotate in its orbit?”, Scientists have made many discoveries. They realized that the orbit itself is not ideal, so our green planet is located from the Sun at different points at different distances from each other. Therefore, an average value was calculated: 149,600,000 km.
The Earth is closest to the Sun on January 3rd and farther away on July 4th. The following concepts are associated with these phenomena: the smallest and largest temporary day in the year, in relation to the night. Studying the same question: “In which direction does the Earth rotate in its solar orbit?”, Scientists made one more conclusion: the process of circular motion occurs both in orbit and around its own invisible rod (axis). Having made the discoveries of these two rotations, scientists asked questions not only about the causes of such phenomena, but also about the shape of the orbit, as well as the speed of rotation.
How did scientists determine in which direction the Earth rotates around the Sun in the planetary system?
The orbital picture of the planet Earth was described by a German astronomer and mathematician In his fundamental work New Astronomy, he calls the orbit elliptical.
All objects on the Earth's surface rotate with it, using conventional descriptions of the planetary picture of the solar system. It can be said that, observing from the north from space, to the question: “In which direction does the Earth rotate around the central luminary?”, The answer will be: “From west to east.”
Comparing with the movements of the hands in the clock - this is against its course. This point of view was accepted with regard to the North Star. The same will be seen by a person who is on the surface of the Earth from the side of the Northern Hemisphere. Having imagined himself on a ball moving around a fixed star, he will see his rotation from right to left. This is equivalent to going against the clock or from west to east.
earth axis
All this also applies to the answer to the question: “In which direction does the Earth rotate around its axis?” - in the opposite direction of the clock. But if you imagine yourself as an observer in the Southern Hemisphere, the picture will look different - on the contrary. But, realizing that in space there are no concepts of west and east, scientists pushed off from the earth's axis and the North Star, to which the axis is directed. This determined the generally accepted answer to the question: "In which direction does the Earth rotate around its axis and around the center of the solar system?". Accordingly, the Sun is shown in the morning from the horizon from the east, and is hidden from our eyes in the west. It is interesting that many people compare the earth's revolutions around its own invisible axial rod with the rotation of a top. But at the same time, the earth's axis is not visible and is somewhat tilted, and not vertical. All this is reflected in the shape of the globe and the elliptical orbit.
Sidereal and solar days
In addition to answering the question: “In which direction does the Earth rotate clockwise or counterclockwise?” Scientists calculated the time of revolution around its invisible axis. It is 24 hours. Interestingly, this is only an approximate number. In fact, a complete revolution is 4 minutes less (23 hours 56 minutes 4.1 seconds). This is the so-called star day. We consider a day on a solar day: 24 hours, since the Earth needs an additional 4 minutes every day in its planetary orbit to return to its place.
It is hardly worth explaining the phenomenon of electromagnetic induction. The essence of Faraday's law is known to any schoolchild: when a conductor moves in a magnetic field, an ammeter registers a current (Fig. A).
But in nature there is another phenomenon of induction of electric currents. To fix it, let's do a simple experiment shown in Figure B. If you mix the conductor not in a magnetic, but in an inhomogeneous electric field, a current is also excited in the conductor. The induction emf in this case is due to the rate of change in the flow of the electric field strength. If we change the shape of the conductor - let's take, say, a sphere and rotate it in a non-uniform electric field - then an electric current will be found in it.
next experience. Let three conductive spheres of different diameters be placed in isolation into each other like nesting dolls (Fig. 4a). If we begin to rotate this multilayer ball in an inhomogeneous electric field, we will find a current not only in the outer, but also in the inner layers! But, according to established ideas, there should not be an electric field inside a conductive sphere! However, the devices that register the effect are impartial! Moreover, with an external field strength of 40-50 V/cm, the current voltage in the spheres is quite high - 10-15 kV.
Fig.B-F. B - the phenomenon of electrical induction. (Unlike the previous one, it is hardly known to a wide range of readers. The effect was studied by A. Komarov in 1977. Five years later, an application was submitted to VNIIGPE and priority was given to the discovery). E - non-uniform electric field. The following designations are used in the formula: ε is the emf of electric induction, c is the speed of light, N is the flux of the electric field strength, t is time.
We also note the following result of the experiments: when the ball rotates in the east direction (that is, in the same way, how our planet rotates) it has magnetic poles that coincide in location with the magnetic poles of the Earth (Fig. 3a).
The essence of the following experience is shown in Figure 2a. The conductive rings and the sphere are arranged so that their rotation axes are centered. When both bodies rotate in the same direction, an electric current is induced in them. It also exists between the ring and the ball, which are a dischargeless spherical capacitor. Moreover, for the appearance of currents, no additional external electric field is required. It is also impossible to attribute this effect to an external magnetic field, since due to it the direction of the current in the sphere would turn out to be perpendicular to that which is detected.
And the last experience. Let us place a conductive ball between two electrodes (Fig. 1a). When a voltage sufficient for air ionization (5-10 kV) is applied to them, the ball begins to rotate and an electric current is excited in it. The torque in this case is due to the ring current of air ions around the ball and the transfer current - the movement of individual point charges that have settled on the surface of the ball.
All of the above experiments can be carried out in a school physics room on a laboratory table.
Now imagine that you are a giant, commensurate with the solar system, and you are observing an experience that has been going on for billions of years. Around the yellow luminary, our blue star flies in its orbit. planet. The upper layers of its atmosphere (ionosphere), starting from a height of 50-80 km, are saturated with ions and free electrons. They arise under the influence of solar radiation and cosmic radiation. But the concentration of charges on the day and night sides is not the same. It is much larger from the side of the Sun. The different charge density between the day and night hemispheres is nothing but the difference in electric potentials.
Here we come to the solution: Why does the earth rotate? Usually the most common answer was: “It's her property. In nature, everything rotates - electrons, planets, galaxies ... ". But compare figures 1a and 1b, and you will get a more specific answer. The potential difference between the illuminated and unilluminated parts of the atmosphere generates currents: ring ionospheric and portable over the Earth's surface. They spin our planet.
In addition, it is known that the atmosphere and the Earth rotate almost synchronously. But their axes of rotation do not coincide, because on the dayside the ionosphere is pressed against the planet by the solar wind. As a result, the Earth rotates in the non-uniform electric field of the ionosphere. Now let's compare Figures 2a and 2b: in the inner layers of the earth's firmament, a current should flow in the opposite direction to the ionospheric one - the mechanical energy of the Earth's rotation is converted into electrical energy. It turns out a planetary electric generator, which is driven by solar energy.
Figures 3a and 3b suggest that the ring current in the Earth's interior is the main cause of its magnetic field. By the way, now it is clear why it weakens during magnetic storms. The latter are a consequence of solar activity, which increases the ionization of the atmosphere. The ring current of the ionosphere increases, its magnetic field grows and compensates for the earth's.
Our model allows us to answer one more question. Why does the western drift of world magnetic anomalies occur? It is approximately 0.2° per year. We have already mentioned the synchronous rotation of the Earth and the ionosphere. In fact, this is not entirely true: there is some slippage between them. Our calculations show that if the ionosphere in 2000 years makes one revolution less than planet, the global magnetic anomalies will have an existing drift to the west. If there is more than one revolution, the polarity of the geomagnetic poles will change, and magnetic anomalies will begin to drift to the east. The direction of the current in the earth is determined by the positive or negative slip between the ionosphere and the planet.
In general, when analyzing the electrical mechanism of the Earth's rotation, we find a strange circumstance: the braking forces of space are negligible, the planet has no "bearings", and according to our calculations, its rotation consumes power of the order of 10 16 W! Without load, such a dynamo must go haywire! But it doesn't happen. Why? There is only one answer - because of the resistance of the rocks of the earth, through which the electric current flows.
In what geospheres does it mainly occur and in what way, besides the geomagnetic field, does it manifest itself?
The charges of the ionosphere interact primarily with the ions of the World Ocean, and, as is known, there are indeed corresponding currents in it. Another result of this interaction is the global dynamics of the hydrosphere. Let's take an example to explain its mechanism. In industry, electromagnetic devices are used for pumping or mixing liquid melts. This is done by traveling electromagnetic fields. The waters of the ocean mix in a similar way, but not a magnetic, but an electric field works here. However, in his works, Academician V.V. Shuleikin proved that the currents of the World Ocean cannot create a geomagnetic field.
So, its cause must be looked for deeper.
The ocean floor, called the lithospheric layer, is composed mainly of rocks with high electrical resistance. Here the main current cannot be induced either.
But in the next layer, in the mantle, which starts from a very characteristic Moho boundary and has good electrical conductivity, significant currents can be induced (Fig. 4b). But then they must be accompanied by thermoelectric processes. What is observed in reality?
The outer layers of the Earth up to half of its radius are in a solid state. However, it is from them, and not from the liquid core of the Earth, that the molten rock of volcanic eruptions comes. There are reasons to believe that the liquid areas of the upper mantle are heated by electrical energy.
Before the eruption in volcanic areas, a whole series of tremors occurs. The electromagnetic anomalies noted at the same time confirm that the shocks are of an electrical nature. The eruption is accompanied by a cascade of lightning. But most importantly, the graph of volcanic activity coincides with the graph of solar activity and correlates with the speed of the Earth's rotation, a change in which automatically leads to an increase in induced currents.
And this is what academician of the Azerbaijan Academy of Sciences Sh. Mehdiyev established: mud volcanoes in various regions of the world come to life and cease their action almost simultaneously. And here the activity of the sun coincides with volcanic activity.
Volcanologists are also familiar with this fact: if you change the polarity on the electrodes of a device that measures the resistance of flowing lava, then its readings change. This can be explained by the fact that the crater of the volcano has a potential other than zero - again electricity appears.
And now let's touch on another cataclysm, which, as we will see, also has a connection with the proposed hypothesis of a planetary dynamo.
It is known that the electrical potential of the atmosphere changes immediately before and during earthquakes, but the mechanism of these anomalies has not yet been studied. Often before shocks, a phosphor glows, wires spark, and electrical structures fail. For example, during the Tashkent earthquake, the insulation of the cable that ran to the electrode at a depth of 500 m burned out. It is assumed that the electric potential of the soil along the cable, which caused its breakdown, was from 5 to 10 kV. By the way, geochemists testify that the underground rumble, the glow of the sky, the change in the polarity of the electric field of the surface atmosphere are accompanied by the continuous release of ozone from the bowels. And this is essentially an ionized gas that occurs during electrical discharges. Such facts make us talk about the existence of underground lightning. And again, the seismic activity coincides with the schedule of solar activity...
The existence of electrical energy in the bowels of the earth was known in the last century, not attaching much importance to it in the geological life of the planet. But a few years ago, the Japanese researcher Sasaki came to the conclusion that the main cause of earthquakes is not in the movements of tectonic plates, but in the amount of electromagnetic energy that the earth's crust accumulates from the sun. Aftershocks, according to Sasaki, occur when the stored energy exceeds a critical level.
What, in our opinion, is underground lightning? If the current flows through the conductive layer, the charge density over its cross section is approximately the same. When the discharge breaks through the dielectric, the current rushes through a very narrow channel and does not obey Ohm's law, but has a so-called S-shaped characteristic. The voltage in the channel remains constant, and the current reaches colossal values. At the moment of breakdown, all the substance covered by the channel passes into a gaseous state - superhigh pressure develops and an explosion occurs, leading to vibrations and destruction of rocks.
The force of a lightning explosion can be observed when it hits a tree - the trunk shatters into chips. Experts use it to create an electro-hydraulic shock (Yutkin effect) in various devices. They crush hard rocks, deform metals. In principle, the mechanism of an earthquake and an electro-hydraulic shock are similar. The difference is in the power of the discharge and in the conditions of release of thermal energy. Rock masses, having a folded structure, become gigantic ultra-high-voltage capacitors that can be recharged several times, which leads to repeated shocks. Sometimes the charges, breaking through to the surface, ionize the atmosphere - and the sky glows, burn the soil - and fires occur.
Now that the generator of the Earth has been determined in principle, I would like to touch upon its possibilities that are useful to people.
If the volcano runs on electric current, then you can find its electrical circuit and switch the current to your needs. In terms of power, one volcano will replace about a hundred large power plants.
If an earthquake is caused by the accumulation of electric charges, then they can be used as an inexhaustible environmentally friendly source of electricity. And as a result of its “re-profiling” from charging underground lightning to peaceful work, the strength and number of earthquakes will decrease.
The time has come for a comprehensive, purposeful study of the electrical structure of the Earth. The energies hidden in it are colossal, and they can both make humanity happy and, in case of ignorance, lead to disaster. Indeed, in the search for minerals, ultra-deep drilling is already actively used. In some places, drill rods can pierce electrified layers, short circuits will occur, and the natural balance of electric fields will be disturbed. Who knows what the consequences will be? This is also possible: a huge current will go through the metal rod, which will turn the well into an artificial volcano. There was something like...
Without going into details for now, we note that typhoons and hurricanes, droughts and floods, in our opinion, are also associated with electric fields, in the alignment of forces of which man is increasingly interfering. How will such an intervention end?
For billions of years, day after day, the Earth rotates around its axis. This makes sunrises and sunsets commonplace for life on our planet. The Earth has been doing this since it formed 4.6 billion years ago. And it will continue to do so until it ceases to exist. This will probably happen when the Sun turns into a red giant and swallows our planet. But why Earth?
Why does the earth rotate?
The Earth was formed from a disk of gas and dust that revolved around the newborn Sun. Thanks to this spatial disk, particles of dust and rock were folded together to form the Earth. As the Earth grew, space rocks continued to collide with the planet. And they had an impact on it that made our planet rotate. And because all the debris in the early solar system revolved around the sun in roughly the same direction, the collisions that made the earth (and most of the rest of the solar system's bodies) spin round the sun in that same direction.
Gas and dust disk
A reasonable question arises - why did the gas and dust disk itself rotate? The sun and the solar system were formed at the moment when a cloud of dust and gas began to condense under the influence of its own weight. Most of the gas came together to become the Sun, and the remaining material created the planetary disk surrounding it. Before it took shape, gas molecules and dust particles moved within its boundaries evenly in all directions. But at some point, randomly, some gas and dust molecules folded their energy in the same direction. This set the direction of rotation of the disk. As the gas cloud began to contract, its rotation accelerated. The same process occurs when skaters start to spin faster if they press their hands to the body.
In space, there are not many factors capable of planetary rotation. Therefore, as soon as they begin to rotate, this process does not stop. The rotating young solar system has a large angular momentum. This characteristic describes the tendency of an object to continue rotating. It can be assumed that all exoplanets probably also begin to rotate in the same direction around their stars when their planetary system is formed.
And we're doing the opposite!
Interestingly, in the solar system, some planets have a direction of rotation opposite to the movement around the sun. Venus rotates in the opposite direction relative to the Earth. And the axis of rotation of Uranus is tilted 90 degrees. Scientists do not fully understand the processes that caused these planets to get such directions of rotation. But they have some guesses. Venus may have received such a rotation as a result of a collision with another cosmic body at an early stage of its formation. Or perhaps Venus began to rotate in the same way as other planets. But over time, the Sun's gravity began to slow down its rotation due to its dense clouds. Which, combined with the friction between the planet's core and its mantle, caused the planet to rotate in the opposite direction.
In the case of Uranus, scientists have suggested that there was a collision of the planet with a huge rocky fragment. Or perhaps with several different objects that changed the axis of his rotation.
Despite such anomalies, it is clear that all objects in space rotate in one direction or another.
Everything is spinning
Asteroids are spinning. The stars are turning. According to NASA, galaxies also rotate. It takes the solar system 230 million years to complete one revolution around the center of the Milky Way. Some of the fastest rotating objects in the universe are dense, round objects called pulsars. They are the remnants of massive stars. Some city-sized pulsars can rotate around their axis hundreds of times per second. The fastest and most famous of them, discovered in 2006 and called Terzan 5ad, rotates 716 times per second.
Black holes can do this even faster. It is assumed that one of them, named GRS 1915 + 105, can rotate at a speed of 920 to 1150 times per second.
However, the laws of physics are inexorable. All rotations eventually slow down. When , it rotated around its axis at a rate of one revolution every four days. Today, our star takes about 25 days to complete one revolution. Scientists believe that the reason for this is that the Sun's magnetic field interacts with the solar wind. This is what slows it down.
The Earth's rotation is also slowing down. The moon's gravity acts on the earth in such a way that it slowly slows down its rotation. Scientists have calculated that the Earth's rotation has slowed by a total of about 6 hours over the past 2,740 years. This is only 1.78 milliseconds over a century.
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Our planet is in constant motion, it revolves around the Sun and its own axis. The earth's axis is an imaginary line drawn from the North to the South Pole (they remain motionless during rotation) at an angle of 66 0 33 ꞌ with respect to the plane of the Earth. People cannot notice the moment of rotation, because all objects are moving in parallel, their speed is the same. It would look exactly the same as if we were sailing on a ship and did not notice the movement of objects and objects on it.
A full rotation around the axis is completed within one sidereal day, consisting of 23 hours 56 minutes and 4 seconds. During this interval, then one or the other side of the planet turns towards the Sun, receiving from it a different amount of heat and light. In addition, the rotation of the Earth around its axis affects its shape (flattened poles are the result of the planet's rotation around its axis) and the deviation when bodies move in a horizontal plane (rivers, currents and winds of the Southern Hemisphere deviate to the left, Northern - to the right).
Linear and angular speed of rotation
(Earth rotation)
The linear speed of the Earth's rotation around its axis is 465 m/s or 1674 km/h in the equatorial zone, as we move away from it, the speed gradually slows down, at the North and South Poles it is equal to zero. For example, for citizens of the equatorial city of Quito (the capital of Ecuador in South America), the rotation speed is just 465 m / s, and for Muscovites living on the 55th parallel north of the equator - 260 m / s (almost half as much) .
Every year, the speed of rotation around the axis decreases by 4 milliseconds, which is associated with the influence of the Moon on the strength of sea and ocean ebb and flow. The pull of the Moon "pulls" the water in the opposite direction to the Earth's axial rotation, creating a slight frictional force that slows the rotation rate by 4 milliseconds. The rate of angular rotation remains the same everywhere, its value is 15 degrees per hour.
Why does day turn into night
(The change of night and day)
The time of a complete rotation of the Earth around its axis is one sidereal day (23 hours 56 minutes 4 seconds), during this time period the side illuminated by the Sun is first “in the power” of the day, the shadow side is at the mercy of the night, and then vice versa.
If the Earth rotated differently and one side of it was constantly turned towards the Sun, then there would be a high temperature (up to 100 degrees Celsius) and all the water would evaporate, on the other side, frost would rage and the water would be under a thick layer of ice. Both the first and second conditions would be unacceptable for the development of life and the existence of the human species.
Why do the seasons change
(Change of seasons on earth)
Due to the fact that the axis is inclined with respect to the earth's surface at a certain angle, its sections receive different amounts of heat and light at different times, which causes the change of seasons. According to the astronomical parameters necessary to determine the season, some points in time are taken as reference points: for summer and winter, these are the Solstice Days (June 21 and December 22), for spring and autumn, the Equinoxes (March 20 and September 23). From September to March, the Northern Hemisphere is turned towards the Sun for less time and, accordingly, receives less heat and light, hello winter-winter, the Southern Hemisphere at this time receives a lot of heat and light, long live summer! 6 months pass and the Earth moves to the opposite point of its orbit and the Northern Hemisphere already receives more heat and light, the days become longer, the Sun rises higher - summer is coming.
If the Earth were located in relation to the Sun exclusively in a vertical position, then the seasons would not exist at all, because all points on the half illuminated by the Sun would receive the same and uniform amount of heat and light.
