22 July 2025 - Shortest Day by 1.34mS

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Earth will spin faster on July 22 to create 2nd-shortest day in history

By Jamie Carter published 12 hours ago

Our planet has been rotating at its fastest since records began in 1973.

Earth will complete a full rotation in slightly less time than usual on Tuesday, July 22, making it one of the shortest days ever recorded.

The difference will be just 1.34 milliseconds less than the standard 24 hours — not something you'll notice — but it's part of a puzzling trend in Earth's rotational behavior that has been unfolding in recent years. If it continues, a second may need to be subtracted from atomic clocks around 2029 — a so-called negative leap second, which has never been done before.

 

The speed of Earth's rotation isn't fixed. Long ago, a day was much shorter than the 24 hours — or 86,400 seconds — we're now accustomed to. According to a 2023 study, a day on Earth was approximately 19 hours for a significant part of Earth's early history, due to a balance between solar atmospheric tides and lunar ocean tides. However, over deep time, a day on Earth has become consistently longer. The primary culprit has been tidal friction from the moon, which has caused it to gradually move farther away from Earth. As it moves away, the moon saps Earth's rotational energy, causing Earth's rotation to slow and days to lengthen.

Full Article: 
https://www.space.com/astronomy/earth/earth-will-spin-faster-on-july-22-to-create-2nd-shortest-day-in-history