What Would Happen If the Earth Stopped Spinning?
SUBSCRIBE PLANET EARTH What Would Happen If the Earth Stopped Spinning? The thought experiment reveals just how important our planet’s rotation really is. By Nathaniel Scharping Mar 18, 2021 1:30 AM (Credit: danm12/Shutterstock) Newsletter Sign up for our email newsletter for the latest science news SIGN UP In the 1951 film The Day the Earth Stood Still, an extraterrestrial named Klaatu and his robot companion Gort stop nearly all of the electronics on Earth simultaneously, using their advanced alien technology. Cars, factories, television sets and more all cease to work, and the planet settles into an eerie pause. But what if the movie meant its title more literally? Imagine an alien with a still more powerful tool, one that could actually stop Earth in its tracks and halt our planet’s rotation. The Day the Earth Stopped Spinning would be a far more destructive movie than the Hollywood original. We may not realize it, but our planet’s rotation underlies some of the most basic pr