“The faster the planet, the more intense the storms…”
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Last month, Earth witnessed some of its shortest recorded days. The planet spun rapidly enough to shave 1.4 milliseconds off the usual 24 hours. These natural accelerations of Earth’s rotation are often imperceptible. Yet, if you’re like me, the sensation that our world is increasingly chaotic—at least metaphorically—may feel familiar.
In my debut novel circular motion, I explore what occurs when Earth’s rotation accelerates not just by milliseconds, but by a minute, an hour, or even 12 hours. What happens when our planet begins to spin at an astonishing speed?
The sunrise unfolds as we imagine it. How many of us already feel pressed for time in a single day? In circular motion, the characters find themselves overstretched as the days grow shorter, struggling against the demands of their daily lives. Their rush only deepens the issue, relying on rapid global transport systems, responsible for the planet’s acceleration within the narrative. (Cyclical themes often appear in fiction.)
However, when the planet accelerates sufficiently, scheduling mishaps become the least of the characters’ worries. The spin of Earth impacts numerous facets of life. For instance, it governs the movement of liquid metals within the Earth and fortifies the planet’s magnetic field. Altered spins could disrupt everything from animal migration patterns to the visibility of the auroras. Ultimately, I had to select which effects to portray in the book for literary significance, including whimsical ones (like animals wandering off).
Upon discovering that cyclones would increase, I noted striking parallels—both with the “circle” motifs in my book and the genuine climate crisis presented in circular motion. Cyclones (along with hurricanes and typhoons) depend on the “Coriolis effect,” wherein air and water are deflected from the quickly spinning equator towards the slower-spinning poles. This phenomenon results in counterclockwise storms in the Northern Hemisphere and clockwise ones in the Southern Hemisphere. The faster the planet spins, the more intense the storms become.
Yet the aspect I felt most compelled to illustrate—the most vivid and striking manifestation of modern-day dizziness and disorientation—was the effect of planetary spin on gravity.
As the Earth rotates and we spin with it, centripetal forces keep us grounded. Without this force, we would be flung into space (albeit slowly), like a hammer released during an athletic throw, or like glasses sliding off your face if you spin too quickly. While my glasses may be fitting a bit too loosely, thankfully our position on Earth remains stable. What anchors us is gravity. However, with increased rotation, gravity effectively diminishes (so to speak), making us feel lighter. I was both thrilled and a bit apprehensive, learning that Earth’s rotation makes us feel about 1% lighter than if the planet stood still. At the equator, where you’re moving fastest around Earth’s axis, the circle you trace is widest.
Further from the equator, this phenomenon is less pronounced, but it’s undoubtedly odd. The direction of gravity (which pulls towards the center of the Earth) doesn’t align with the circular path you’re taking (around Earth’s axis). Consequently, Earth’s rotation not only weakens gravity but also creates the sensation of it being tilted.
As a novelist, I was dedicated to envisioning how this would feel at increased speeds. We calculated the strength and direction of what the book’s characters term “gravity loss” in London, California, and the Caribbean. Where does a ball come to a stop when rolling on this tilted landscape? What does the Beijing skyline appear like if it tilts 7 degrees away? If the land is slanted, is it akin to viewing a decline? (Not precisely!) Is it indeed 7 degrees? (Kind of!) Progressively, the world in circular motion transforms into a more topsy-turvy place.
However, the central question the book presents is how one feels a sense of belonging in such a world. In circular motion, the characters’ lives remain largely undisturbed by Earth’s acceleration. It’s not their relationships, career paths, faith, or sense of self that are impacted. They pursue love and meaning, feeling unmoored, askew, and spiraling through contemporary existence. Indeed, we grapple with that too.
Alex Foster circular motion (Grove Press) The latest selections from the New Scientist Book Club. Join us and read along here.
Source: www.newscientist.com
