what is happening to the planet

Between 1993 and 2010, humans extracted and transported so much groundwater on our planet that it contributed to the migration of the Earth’s poles. Only the contribution of groundwater redistribution caused the poles to shift 80 centimeters, according to a new analysis by geophysicist Ki-Won So of Seoul National University in South Korea. East.

In 2016, scientists made a breakthrough in finding the reason why the poles of the Earth’s spin are entangled: the distribution of terrestrial water reserves. The new findings allow scientists to confirm that previous estimates of groundwater depletion caused by human activity were equivalent to a total increase of 6 millimeters in global ocean levels over that time. Now So and his colleagues have determined how much people who move groundwater contribute to this excursion.

The Earth’s pole of rotation actually changes frequently. Our study shows that among climate-related causes, groundwater redistribution actually has the greatest impact on the poleward shift.
– so he says.

So how does it work? The earth rotates around its axis of rotation like a mile. When the mass distribution around this axis changes and becomes uneven, the axis shifts to compensate. Climate change has a big impact on this. As frozen parts of the Earth, such as glaciers and ice sheets, melt, the distribution of water on the Earth’s surface changes and the poles—the ends of the spin axis—shift. This effect became apparent in the early 1990s, and much work has been done to determine the role that water redistribution plays in it.

So and colleagues used data from observations and simulations of aurora movement. First, they modeled the movement of the polar poles, taking into account only the contribution of melting ice from glaciers, ice sheets, and sea ice. They then added different levels of groundwater extraction to their model. This brought them closer to the actual observed motion, but the model only began to match when they used an estimate of 2,150 gigatons, which gave the full contribution of groundwater extraction. Without it, the model deviated by 78.48 centimeters instead of 80.

Although the study is based on data up to 2010, which showed a displacement of 4.36 centimeters per year, it is safe to say that the process is ongoing. Scientists can try to influence divergence processes with this information, but that will take decades.