Spinning Top
Tuesday, February 27th, 2007Spinning Top
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A top (like Earth) stops spinning,due to friction.Then Why does the Earth STILL rotate?
If Earth is like a top,a top spins for sometime & comes to rest(due to frictional force). But what about Earth??
The Earth, as mentioned previously, does not have any friction resisting its rotation; it is floating in space so there is nothing to rub against and slow down.
That's not to say the Earth is not slowing down. First of all, the person who stated it was due to the friction of the atmosphere and 'fluid sloshing around' inside is completely off-base. The atmosphere moves with the surface. If it did not, there would be continual 1,000-mph winds at the Equator, which is clearly not the case. And the liquid core is also synchronized in rotation with the rest of the planet.
So what is causing it to slow down? The tidal effects of the Moon, and to a lesser extent the Sun. These drag enourmous quantities of water around the globe, at a much slower rate of rotation, which over time) lots and lots and lots of time, billions of years) is making the length of the day longer. But while tidal forces cause a large force, the angular momentum of the planet is still much larger.
It's still rotating now because it has colossal angular momentum. It's just like a flywheel; the continuation of the rotation is its natural state. It does not require any driving force to continue rotating at the same speed.