What would happen if......
heavymental
Posts: 2,076
....The centre of the earth went cold? I mean, we know that if the Sun burnt itself out we're in alot of trouble, but what if the centre of the Earth did? What keeps it hot anyway? Surely the chemical reactions can't go on forever?
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We would loose our magnetic field and the resulting increase in radiation would give a better cyclists tan and there wouldnt be any water so rain wouldnt be an excuse for me to not ride so, bring it on I say
Is the core not kept hot by the pressure? Perhaps someone who studied this sort of thing rather than me who saw 15 mins of a 60 min documentary on Discovery should answer
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They be nuclear reactions...not chemical. And as far as I know the earth is indeed cooling down, very very very very slowly. The moon used to be like the earth (well actually part of the earth) and used to be hot in the middle, but now its just a solid rock. Earth with a much much larger volume/surface ratio cools much slower. Similarly Mars which is smaller has cooled in centre.0
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Stewie Griffin wrote:We would loose our magnetic field and the resulting increase in radiation would give a better cyclists tan and there wouldnt be any water so rain wouldnt be an excuse for me to not ride so, bring it on I say
Is the core not kept hot by the pressure? Perhaps someone who studied this sort of thing rather than me who saw 15 mins of a 60 min documentary on Discovery should answer
We'd lose our magnetic field? How would that happen then? There'd be no rain? why? Because there'd be no atmposhere either?0 -
I'm not sure we would lose our magnetic field, the field comes from the iron core and presumably that would be still be solid. Plus I thought that the core was solid anyway.
If the planet solidified the big issue would be the drop in global temperatures, but this is up there with super-massive black holes and the sun exploding and the LHC as things you need to worry about.0 -
No, he is right about the magnetic field disappearing. The field comes from movement and currents in the iron liquid part of the core, if the core were to cool these currents stop and as such the dynamo that forms the magnetic field stops.
The core has a solid part and a liquid part. A solid inner and a liquid outer surrounded by a semi liquid mantle. More about the dynamo theory http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dynamo_theory .0 -
ride_whenever wrote:I'm not sure we would lose our magnetic field, the field comes from the iron core and presumably that would be still be solid. Plus I thought that the core was solid anyway.
If the planet solidified the big issue would be the drop in global temperatures, but this is up there with super-massive black holes and the sun exploding and the LHC as things you need to worry about.
The inner core is solid but the outer core where its believed our magnetic field is generated (due to its circulation) isnt. Therefore if it cooled enough (presumably to solidify) we would lose our magnetic field and thus lose our protection from the radiation from the Sun.0 -
If it happens between now and May, Stewie, it'll stop Tottenham getting relegated. No gravity to hold them where they belong. 0
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Stewie Griffin wrote:ride_whenever wrote:I'm not sure we would lose our magnetic field, the field comes from the iron core and presumably that would be still be solid. Plus I thought that the core was solid anyway.
If the planet solidified the big issue would be the drop in global temperatures, but this is up there with super-massive black holes and the sun exploding and the LHC as things you need to worry about.
The inner core is solid but the outer core where its believed our magnetic field is generated (due to its circulation) isnt. Therefore if it cooled enough (presumably to solidify) we would lose our magnetic field and thus lose our protection from the radiation from the Sun.
Snap!0 -
pneumatic wrote:If it happens between now and May, Stewie, it'll stop Tottenham getting relegated. No gravity to hold them where they belong.
Thankfully the well documented 'arry effect has begun to rectify the Ramos anomaly, trific as he would say .
Sorry Billios, snap indeed, I was eating my brie and ham salad roll rather than paying any attention :oops: .0 -
Surely all the dinosaurs that live at the centre would die from the cold. 0
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JLM74 wrote:Surely all the dinosaurs that live at the centre would die from the cold.
Did you sign up just to post that JLM74!? 0 -
I'd be more worried about the magnetic poles flipping. It does happen and geologists say that we are over-due for a flip. I bet there will be major blackouts and a lot of electrical equipment going bang. The worst predictions (sensible ones) of the Millenium Bug will have nothing on this baby.To err is human, but to make a real balls up takes a super computer.0
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I'm more worried about the earth just stopping spinning. I mean, what is someone put the brakes on, with all that momentum we have at the moment we'd end up heading east at great speed.
I read a very worrying article a while back about the hard drives in everyone computer. They are all spinning in the same direction, each one applying a tiny force down through your desk to the earth opposing the natural spin of our planet. They projected that once tetrabite hard drives become common, the earth could actually stop or go into reverse! :shock: Think about it, why are they adding a leap second this year...
Apparently there is a big cover-up in Silicon Valley, even Apple are involved! The UN is so worried they are thinking about forcing people in the northern hemisphere to place their laptops upside down to counteract the effect. I just hope they are in time.0 -
Heavymental wrote:JLM74 wrote:Surely all the dinosaurs that live at the centre would die from the cold.
Did you sign up just to post that JLM74!?
Yup, though I've been lurking for a while.
Interesting what gets people to make their first post. 0 -
Stewie Griffin wrote:pneumatic wrote:If it happens between now and May, Stewie, it'll stop Tottenham getting relegated. No gravity to hold them where they belong.
Thankfully the well documented 'arry effect has begun to rectify the Ramos anomaly, trific as he would say .
Sorry Billios, snap indeed, I was eating my brie and ham salad roll rather than paying any attention :oops: .
The last time Arry Turncoat switched clubs mid season they got relegated, so looks like you will be playing them next year 0 -
Term1te wrote:I'm more worried about the earth just stopping spinning. I mean, what is someone put the brakes on, with all that momentum we have at the moment we'd end up heading east at great speed.
I read a very worrying article a while back about the hard drives in everyone computer. They are all spinning in the same direction, each one applying a tiny force down through your desk to the earth opposing the natural spin of our planet. They projected that once tetrabite hard drives become common, the earth could actually stop or go into reverse! :shock: Think about it, why are they adding a leap second this year...
Apparently there is a big cover-up in Silicon Valley, even Apple are involved! The UN is so worried they are thinking about forcing people in the northern hemisphere to place their laptops upside down to counteract the effect. I just hope they are in time.
A solution to this could be for half the people who have read this to turn their hard drives up the other way, it would be our contribution to saving the planet 0 -
Tempestas wrote:Stewie Griffin wrote:pneumatic wrote:If it happens between now and May, Stewie, it'll stop Tottenham getting relegated. No gravity to hold them where they belong.
Thankfully the well documented 'arry effect has begun to rectify the Ramos anomaly, trific as he would say .
Sorry Billios, snap indeed, I was eating my brie and ham salad roll rather than paying any attention :oops: .
The last time Arry Turncoat switched clubs mid season they got relegated, so looks like you will be playing them next year
'arry's triffic :P The lads were triffic, it was a triffic pass and a triffic 'eader.
COYS 8)0 -
no magnetosphere means that the various rays from the Sun would no longer be deflected round the Earth, but would penetrate our atmosphere. A preview of the sort of probs this causes was experienced a few years back in Montreal where (I think) unusually high Solar flare activity produced a massive peak in solar radiation such that more than usual got through, frying computer systems and crashing communications.0
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Term1te wrote:Think about it, why are they adding a leap second this year...
They are forever adding leap seconds as the Earth's spin is gradually slowing down. What is more worring is knowing who is in charge of adding the leap seconds - the French, that's who.To err is human, but to make a real balls up takes a super computer.0 -
So who's in charge of the French? :PSirius631 wrote:Term1te wrote:Think about it, why are they adding a leap second this year...
They are forever adding leap seconds as the Earth's spin is gradually slowing down. What is more worring is knowing who is in charge of adding the leap seconds - the French, that's who.0
