Why does the earth spin and how come it continues to do so at the same rate or speed for thousands of years?

Question

There is no evidence, visual or recorded, that earth is slowing down in its spinning.

Answer 1

The rotation of the planets(and hence the earth) around their axes relates to the origin of the solar system. According to the theory of conservation of angular momentum,the rotation(as well as revolution) must have originated at the time they formed from a primordial revolving disk of hot gases known as the solar nebula,the sun having formed in the centre of the disk.This can be inferred from the fact that most of the planets rotate and revolve in the same direction(west to east).The sun itself rotates on its axis from west to east as viewed from the north celestial pole in space.
Due to absence of frictional forces in the space, the rate of spinning has not come down appreciably.

Answer 2

The Earth spins due to the gravitational energy received as it was formed by the pull of dust and rocks 4.6 billion years ago. Other effects such as the very slow flow of the internal magma effect the spin.

The spin is slowing down, very very very slowly, but as there have been no major gravitational effects acting on the earth (such as impacts or other planets too close), the spin does not really change over 1000s of years.

Answer 3

The Earth and all the other planets spin because the dust cloud that they were condensed from was spinning. As they coalesced the spin rate increased (conservation of momentum, like an ice skaters doing a pirouette, when she pulls her arms in she spins faster.)
The planets act as gigantic flywheels and although they tend to slow due to tidal actions of the sun the rate of slowing is very,very,very small.

Answer 4

Ha, ha - the guy who complained about getting a thumbs down for "correct" answers gets another one - because he's wrong !

You've already got your answer though, about the conservation of angular momentum.

The Earth is actually slowing down, albeit imperceptibly. Each time we launch a spacecraft using the "sling-shot" method to speed it up, we are actually stealing some of the Earth's momentum and slowing it down a bit more.

Answer 5

ok, here we circulate, how do you detect circulate? the only way you already know you're moving is considering which you experience some stress appearing on you. in case you experience a stress appearing on you means you're accelerating. once you're sitting in a vehicle utilising on a soft asphalt highway in a today line at consistent speed and you close up your eyes, you especially much won't be able to tell if the automobile is moving or not. the only reason you could inform you're moving is as a results of the fact the engine vibrates. The earth strikes at blazing speed, however the accelerations that happens to it is miniscule, that's why you won't be able to experience it. If the earth without warning stops, you would be propelled forward at one thousand mph, once you're close to the equator, at once killing you.

Answer 6

Conservation of angular momentum...basic physics. Actually the Earth is slowing down very gradually because of the Moon's gravitational drag. The length of the year is adjusted by international agreement every few years.

Answer 7

laws of motion. anything in motion will stay in motion unless acted upon by another force. that force is normally friction. and theres no friction in space, theres only a few atoms per meter. and a few atoms per meter isn't enough to slow down a massive object like the earth very much. so i'm sure it is slowing down very very slightly, like .00000000001 mph every year.

Answer 8

Why would it slow down? What's going to stop it? What's in motion will stay in motion. Laws of inertia.

*Gotta love the thumb-downs for correct answers.

Answer 9

Of course. there is no friction in space.

Answer 10

solar winds from gods butt