Quake May Have Made Earth Wobble

According to CNN, scientists believe "The deadly Asian earthquake may have permanently accelerated the Earth's rotation, shortening days by a fraction of a second and caused the planet to wobble on its axis.

"Richard Gross, a geophysicist with NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in California, theorized that a shift of mass toward the Earth's center during the quake Sunday caused the planet to spin 3 microseconds, or millionths of a second, faster and to tilt about an inch on its axis."

• Images of the beaches at Kalutara, Sri Lanka show how beautiful and peaceful they were before the tsunami, and how frightening during it.
  
• Our Geography Guide tells us All About Tsunamis.
  
• Learn how you can help.
  
• Forum Post of the Day:
  
  Subject: 50-50 Chance Humanity Destroys Itself
  "50-50 Chance Humanity Destroys Itself A British astronomer estimates that humanity has a 50% chance of surviving another century.
  
  "Science & Technology at Scientific American.com: Doom and Gloom by 2100 -- Unleashed viruses, environmental disaster, gray goo--astronomer Sir Martin Rees calculates that civilization has only a 50-50 chance of making it to the 22nd century."
  bing772
• School will be starting back soon, for many students. Be prepared for the Science Fairs. Check out these Top Science Fair Books.

----------
Don't forget to read and/or post in our Forum.
Looking for a Kwanzaa gift for your amateur astronomer or space enthusiast? Need to spend some of your Christmas Cash or Hannukah gelt? Check out our Gift Guide
* Spotlight: It's never too early to start learning about astronomy. Start your kids off right with these top astronomy books for kids.