A new study published in the scientific journal Nature suggests that the rotation of the Earth’s inner core is slowing down and may come to a complete standstill by 2040. The research, conducted by scientists from the University of Utah, the University of Southern California, Cornell University and the Chinese Academy of Sciences, examines the inner core’s rotation by analyzing seismic waves from earthquakes.
The inner core plays a crucial role in the formation of the planet’s magnetic field. Since the discovery of the time variability of seismic waves from repeated earthquakes, the rotation of the inner core has been changing over the years, according to the article. Currently, the inner core is moving slowly in the opposite direction of the Earth’s surface rotation. While the scientists predict that it will come to a standstill by 2040, they also expect it to resume its original rotation in the same direction as the Earth’s surface in the future.
In late 2023, researchers discovered a mysterious signal emitted by the Earth’s core, with a wave period of 8.7 years. Earlier that year, Chinese scientists shocked the global scientific community by claiming that the Earth’s core, its deepest part, had stopped rotating or even started moving in the opposite direction of the Earth’s surface. Subsequently, warnings of irreversible catastrophes and irreparable changes began to spread. However, there are no precise data on the movement and halting of the inner core.