Get the latest Science News and Discoveries

Mars is Spinning Faster and Faster

Before it retired, NASA's Mars Insight Lander sent home detailed data about the rotation of Mars. From these data, planetary scientists have discovered that the planet's rotation rate is accelerating by about four milliarcseconds per year, shortening its day by a fraction of a millisecond yearly. Scientists aren't exactly sure why it's happening, but it could be from ice accumulating at the polar caps, changing its center of mass, and increasing its rotation rate.

None

Get the Android app