We dammed so much water it moved Earth's poles
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We dammed so much water it moved Earth's poles Over the past two centuries, humans have locked up enough water in dams to shift Earth’s poles slightly away from the planet’s axis of rotation, according to new research. The construction of nearly 7,000 dams from 1835 to 2011 shifted the pole
  • AbouBenAdhem@lemmy.worldEnglish
    2·
    5 days ago

    I would have thought the volume of water retained on land by dams would be more than offset by the volume lost to melting glaciers.

    • eldavi@lemmy.mlEnglish
      2·
      5 days ago

      While the shift is small, it could help scientists understand how the poles will move if major glaciers and ice sheets melt due to climate change

      understanding the effect upon the glaciers seems to be their goal.

      • AbouBenAdhem@lemmy.worldEnglish
        2·
        5 days ago

        Yeah—I just don’t understand how they disentangle the two if they’re both happening simultaneously.