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What would happen if the Earth stopped spinning for one minute?

Last Updated: 17.06.2025 00:13

What would happen if the Earth stopped spinning for one minute?

If only the atmosphere keeps going, Earth’s surface is blasted with winds moving at hundreds of miles per hour. Most people die.

“What would happen if the Earth stopped spinning for one minute?”

Bottom line: Depending on the underlying intent of the question, the answer could be anything from the destruction of the planet and every living thing, to a minor inconvenience that requires resetting our clocks.

What is price of the "liberal celebrities" e.g. Bill Maher, Seth Meyers, Jon Stewart, Trevor Noah, Jimmy Kimmel, Desi Lydic etc. to join the great MAGA movement like Stephen Colbert who wanted to European ambassadorship to turn back on "the Left"?

Does the solid Earth + the oceans stop spinning?

If the whole Earth stops by magic, with the angular momentum just vanishing and then reappearing, then the result is very minor. Every clock on Earth would need to be recalibrated against our satellites (unless they magically got paused as well). Siderial, solar, and atomic time would all be out of sync. Other than that, everybody would want to know: What the heck just happened? How did Earth magically stop and start again? But everybody is just fine.

If it stops by magic, does all the energy from Earth’s angular momentum also disappear by magic, or is it released as heat?

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Does the whole planet (from core to atmosphere) stop spinning?

If Earth’s rotation is stopped and all the angular momentum is released as heat, everyone dies.

Does the rocky planet alone stop spinning?

Why don’t Jews regard Jesus as an important teacher or rabbi, if not the Messiah? Putting aside messianic claims, wouldn’t Jesus be one of the most significant Jewish teachers in human history?

The answer depends entirely on how you interpret the question, which is why you see so many completely different responses.

If Earth’s rotation is stopped by a collision, everyone dies. The planet is destroyed.

If the oceans keep going, Earth’s surface is scoured clean by tsunamis moving at hundreds of miles per hour. Nearly everyone dies.

Sorry, Trump supporters, but eventually it will have to be asked: Why didn't Trump do as well in his first term as he is doing NOW?

Does it stop due to a massive collision, or does it stop by magic?