What Would happen if the Earth Stopped rotating?

Question

what if the earth stoped rotating around the sun? And stopped roataing on it axis. And if the moon stopped roatating too? What would happen?

Answer 1

Well, I think "not rotating" means one side would always face the sun, similar to how one side of the moon always faces Earth. The most obvious change would be that the points on Earth where the sun is sufficiently high in the sky would be too hot to support life (you certainly can't exist in a place where your blood literally boils), while the dark side would be far too cold to support life.

It seems like there should be a band where the height of the sun above the horizon allows life to exist, but that probably presents other problems. For sure, the planet would have a lot less life than it does now.

Answer 2

If the earth stopped rotating on it's axis, a day would become a year long, and the year would have only one day. Basically, only half of the earth would be habitable at any given time, due to extreme freezing conditions on the other half.

If the earth stopped orbiting around the sun as well, then the centripetal acceleration of the earth would no longer be in balance with the sun's gravitational pull on the earth, and the earth would be pulled towards the sun until it burned up.

As far as the moon goes, it's effects pale in comparison to the other two events. However, if only the moon stopped orbiting the earth, it would be pulled against the earth. The moon's rotation about it's axis has no effect on the earth.

***Additional Comment: Some of these answerers are saying that we would fall off the earth. That's not even close. We would actually be pulled towards it a little bit more, because there is no centripetal force acting against the force of gravity on our body. The weight change would be greatest at the equator, and inexistent at the poles.

Answer 3

Gravity does not derive from the spinning of the Earth. Earth's spinning is just the result of conservation of angular momentum. The stuff it was made out of wasn't all traveling in the same direction when the pileup occurred that made our Earth and Moon. Since there is no mechanism to stop the Earth's rotation that would let us live, we'd know it immediately (if briefly) when it happened. Either the oceans or the air would continue trying to move at ~1000mph, or the giant impactor that happens to cancel our Earths rotation would sling the outer crust of the Earth into space for a bit.

Answer 4

It all depends on the reason. For instance, if the sun and moon were destroyed, the earth, instead of rotating or revolving would start plunging -- until it reached a point where gravitational forces from other heavenly bodies made it stop falling. Then, it would either begin to revolve and/or rotate again or stay put. In the meantime, everything on the earth's surface (including people and bacateria) would be literally blown away. Since there is no friction in outer space, the earth would not get warmer while falling. However, since outer space is extremely cold, the planet MAY get colder. Anyone that survived (under the surface) would have to go closer to the earth's core to keep warm. This is assuming, of course, that the planet does not get totally destroyed.

Answer 5

The single biggest issue for the earth if it were to stop rotating is not that the day-night cycle would be interrupted, which it would, but what happens to the kinetic energy of rotation of the earth.

The conservation of energy requires that if the earth were to stop rotating then that energy would have to be absorbed by the structure of the earth itself.

Time to do a "back of the envelope" calculation.

The Latent Heat of Fusion (LHF) is the energy required for a solid to become a liquid. Now the earth is not a single substance so we'll use the LHF of rock composed of nickle-iron-granite. The LHF is about 1 megaJoules/kg or 1 x 10^6 joules/kg.

The earth weighs about 6 x 10^24 kg, so the energy needed to "melt" the earth is, roughly, 6 x 10^30 joules.

The kinetic energy of rotation of the earth is roughly 3 x 10^29 joules.

Thus, the earth would heat up to 5% of its LHF. Now, granite melts at roughly 1200 C, and 5% of that is 60 C, or about 140 F. So the surface of the earth would be 140F.

You would not want to be around for the results.

HTH

Charles

Answer 6

If Earth stop rotating on its axis, it would be total devastation. Oceans and objects on its surface would be thrown away and after a couple of days the side of the planet that is covered by solar radiation would be heated causing great convection streams around the planet.

If Moon suddenly stop travelling around the Earth could cause great tsunamis becasue normal tides cycle would break.

If Earth around the Sun suddenly stop, maybe there would not be change of seasons. In this case is hard to imagine the scenario.

Answer 7

first enertia would keep us moving some would smash into the planet some would fly off of it some would zoom accross the surface a littlewhile depending on where we are when the orbit and rotatin stops the earths grvity would seem stronger with out the rotation enertia to keep us up if we survive stoping we get pulled into the planet if we survive that our planet gets pulled into the sun and if you survive that, i want to be near you cause your super man and you can save my butt!

Answer 8

All bad answers and some bad questions
The earth REVOLVES around the sun - if that stopped we would plunge into the sun
If the earth stopped rotating on its axis (assuming instantly) we would all be blown over because the air would still keep rotating. (assuming slowly) our days would get longer and longer and the weather would get very weird - not sure how?
If the moon stopped ROTATING nothing would happen, if it stopped REVOLVING it would plunge to the earth

Answer 9

if earth stops rotating on its axis and if moon stops rotating it will be the end of the world (dooms day)

Answer 10

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if the earth stops roataing on it axis one side will have day light
and the other side won't Temperature problems may arise.
If it stops rotating around the sun the earth will get pulled by the sun's gravitational force.it will simply burn up.
if the moon stops rotating around us it will get pulled by the earth's gravitational force.
refer to centrifugal and centripetal force
any way these events are very unlikely to happen.
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