The rotation of the earth around its axis and the sun occurs continuously. Many phenomena depend on this movement. So, day is replaced by night, one season by another, in different areas a different climate is established.
The daily rotation of the Earth, according to scientists, is 23 hours, 56 minutes, 4.09 seconds. Thus, one complete revolution occurs. At a speed of approximately 1,670 km / h, the planet moves around its axis. Towards the poles, the speed drops to zero.
Man does not notice the rotation of the Earth. This is due to the fact that all objects located next to it move simultaneously and in parallel with the same speed.
The rotation of the Earth around the Sun is carried out in orbit. It is located on an imaginary surface passing through the center of our planet and the brightest star. This surface is called the orbit plane.
An imaginary line between the poles - the axis - passes through the center of the Earth. This line and the plane of the orbit are not perpendicular. The tilt of the axis is approximately 23.5 degrees. The angle of inclination always remains the same. The line around which the earth moves is always tilted to one side.
Orbiting takes a year from the planet. The rotation of the Earth is counterclockwise. It should be noted that the orbit is not perfectly round. The average distance to the Sun is about one hundred and fifty million kilometers. It (distance) changes on average by three million kilometers, thus forming an insignificant orbital oval.
The Earth's orbit is 957 million km. The planet travels this distance in three hundred sixty five days, six hours, nine minutes and nine and a half seconds. According to calculations, the Earth rotates in orbit at a speed of 29 kilometers per second.
Scientists have found that planetary motion is slowing down. This is mainly due to tidal inhibition. On the surface of the Earth, under the influence of the attraction of the Moon (to a greater extent) and the Sun, tidal shafts form. They move from east to west (following these celestial bodies), in the opposite direction to the movement of our planet.
Less importance is attached to the tides in the lithosphere of the Earth. In this case, deformation of the solid in the form of a somewhat retarded tidal wave occurs. It provokes the occurrence of a braking moment, which contributes to the fact that the rotation of the Earth slows down.
It should be noted that tides in the lithosphere affect the process of deceleration of the planet by only 3%, the remaining 97% are marine tides. These data were obtained as a result of creating maps of the waves of the lunar and solar tides.
Atmospheric circulation also affects the speed of the Earth. It is considered the main cause of the seasonal uneven movement of the planet. The movement of the atmosphere occurs from east to west in low latitudes, and from west to east in high and temperate latitudes. At the same time, the moment of impulse in the west winds is positive, and in the east winds it is negative and, according to calculations, several times less than in the first. This difference is redistributed between the Earth and the atmosphere. With an increase in the west wind or a weakening of the east wind, the angular momentum increases in the atmosphere, and decreases in the Earth. Thus, the movement of the planet slows down. With an increase in the east winds and a weakening of the west, respectively, the moment of impulse decreases in the atmosphere. Thus, the movement of the Earth becomes faster. The total angular momentum of the atmosphere and the planet is constant.
Scientists were able to find out that the lengthening of the day until 1620 occurred on average by 2.4 milliseconds per hundred years. After this year, the value decreased almost by half and began to reach 1.4 milliseconds per hundred years. Moreover, according to some recent calculations and observations, the Earth slows down on average by 2.25 milliseconds per hundred years.