This Gigantic Hydroelectric Dam Of China Has Earth-Shifting Capabilities: Scientists (image @Rainmaker1973)

Three Gorges Dam, the largest hydroelectric dam in China, is a very huge infrastructure that is having a say on the spin of the Earth, as per IFL Science. The dam, which is located in the Hubei province of central China, uses the flow of water from three nearby gorges – Qutangxia, Wuxia, and Xilingxia – to spin turbines and generate electricity.

The dam is spread across the longest river in Eurasia, the Yangtze river. It was 2005, when the dam was first found to have earth-shifting capabilities. The US Space agency NASA discovered how the rotation of our planet was affected by the 2004 catastrophic Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami.

NASA explained how changing the distribution of mass on Earth can have a very small influence on the planet’s moment of inertia. Similarly, the spin of Earth can be impacted following an earthquake due to the motion of the tectonic plates, said the space agency.

Also Read: Sexual Relations With 58 Subordinates, Bribery: China’s “Beautiful Governor” Sentenced To 13 Years

NASA said this is what happened in 2004 after the earthquake in Indian Ocean. The scientists also found that the mass distribution on Earth was altered by the earthquake and the length of a day was decreased by 2.68 microseconds.

Experts explained that a massive shift of water can also change the spin of Earth. In a 2005 post, Dr Benjamin Fong Chao, a geophysicist at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center, explained that the giant Chinese dam is able to hold 40 cubic kilometres (10 trillion gallons) of water, said IFL Science. According to Chao’s calculation, this shift of would increase the length of a day by 0.06 microseconds and move the pole position of Earth by about 2 centimetres.

Also Read: Construction Of Chinese Heliport Near Arunachal Pradesh Raises Concerns

The outlet said while the shift is not as huge as the marginal effect of giant earthquakes, it is fairly significant for a human-made structure.

It also noted that humans are influencing the rotation of our planet in other ways too. The report said a similar effect is currently being caused by climate change and its impact on Earth’s mass distribution. Increased temperatures and melting of polar ice caps, and rising of tropical seas, more mass has gathered at the equator of the planet in comparison to its poles. This is slowing the spin of Earth and leading to slightly longer days.