Is it true that if I spin counterclockwise, each turn robs the planet of angular momentum, just a tiny bit?

Answer 1

Yes - a tiny bit. But when you stop spinning, your deceleration gives back exactly the same amount of momentum as you took.

Answer 2

Perhaps is you were from the planet Krypton and you had been rocketed to Earth as a child; maybe that would be a feasible argument.

If you see an ant spinning around in a clockwise motion, are you the least bit affected by it? Or do you just look at it and go, "What the heck?"

Same principle, you're an ant with insufficient mass to affect any angular momentum of the Earth.

Answer 3

YOU + earth and other beings forms nearly isolated system. So by conservation of angular momentum when you spin in any way it will have (at least theoretically) some effect on the earths rotation.BUT as many people said it will have a very "TINY" effect on earth ,But adding for million years of earth ,the net effect would be quite considerable.(i.e. every time u turn anti clock ,earth's momentum slows a bit but cant be increased.)
but this dont happens due to following reasons.
1) effect depends on ur position on earth.it is more if u r on pole and decreases towards equator(assuming net effect as cross product of both rotations)

2) strictly speaking earth is not a perfect isolated system.it is in force field of sun,moon,other planets and even outer galaxy.so this this effect is not that 'effective'

3)if we r taking a million billion years period then there must be all sort of rotations occured on earth.thus if u rotated to decrease earth's momentum someone might on earth have also rotated so that earth regained its lost momenta.so averaged over long period it remains constant.

BUT REMEMBER all above explanations are postulated assuming earth a simple system of sun and planets, but actually earth is a complicated part of system of galaxy as a whole and this system itself decide and regulate motion of all its bodies by interaction bw its constituents.And this system is so perfect which have maintained the balance in galaxy without a mistake

Answer 4

No. Because the force you use to spin in one direction is caused by an equal force in the opposite direction.

Answer 5

You would have less effect on the planet than a tiny single celled amoeba would have doing that on you.

Answer 6

good point...but im not sure it would affect the planet, since u spinning around does not affect the planet's direction of spin...but this is a very good idea...

Answer 7

Nope thats not true. If a fly is walking in a circle on your shirt does that effect the way you walk?

Answer 8

no, u have no control over the planet. imagine you moving a plane in the air...now imagine 50 million planesin one in the air.

Answer 9

maybe i read somewhere that a big volcano eruption will slow down the rotation by about a billionth of a second.

Answer 10

not sure about that Jessica, but you might get a tad dizzy if you go too fast