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Claim: Some Facebook users claimed that the Earth’s rotation on Jul. 9, 2025, was the fastest recorded in mankind’s history.
Verdict: MISLEADING. Existing records revealed that the shortest day was Jul. 5, 2024, when the Earth’s spin was 1.66 milliseconds shorter. Data from the International Earth Rotation and Reference Systems Services disclosed that Jul. 9, 2025, was 1.37 milliseconds shorter than the usual 24 hours.
Full Text
On Jul. 9, 2025, a Facebook user named Project Nightfall posted that the Earth would rotate faster than usual and the 24-hour duration would be shorter by 1.3 to 1.6 milliseconds. The user claimed the change was due to the moon’s positioning farther from the Earth’s equator.
As of Jul. 17, 2025, more than 62,000 Facebook users shared the post, gaining over 193,000 reactions and 12,000 comments within the timeframe.
While Project Nightfall’s post indicated that the date was one of the shortest in modern history, DUBAWA found some Facebook pages claiming it was the shortest day.
While the phenomenon went viral on social media, many users’ comments, which DUBAWA identified, showed scepticism about the acclaimed record.
Reacting to Eric Deters for Kentucky and America’s reel on Jul. 10, 2025, Michele Wright said, “Yesterday [July 9, 2025] was the ninth, and it’s not the shortest day!”.
David Nunn said, “How much sleep time will I lose? I’m working [at] night.”
We also found the claim here and here.
Although this difference may seem minuscule, it has implications for understanding the Earth’s behaviour, modern technology, and global systems. Satellite navigation, telecommunications, and international timekeeping depend on precise time measurements. The claim’s impact on humans’ daily living prompted DUBAWA to verify the information.
Factors influencing Earth’s spin rate
The Earth spins relatively steadily, completing one full turn approximately every 24 hours. This rotation gives rise to the cycle of day and night that governs life on our planet.
Although the Earth’s rotation is mostly stable, it experiences minor variations in speed. The subtle change affects time calculation on phones, GPS, and satellite signals.
Several natural factors contribute to these fluctuations, sometimes causing the Earth to spin faster for brief periods.
- The Moon’s gravitational influence
The Moon’s gravitational pull exerts tidal forces on the Earth, affecting both the oceans and the solid Earth. Over long periods, this interaction gradually slows the Earth’s rotation, lengthening the day by about 1.7 milliseconds per century. However, the Moon’s position relative to the Earth can also cause short-term variations. At specific points in its orbit, the Moon’s gravitational pull can slightly accelerate Earth’s spin.
Adetola Oniku, a professor of geophysics at Modibbo Adama University, Yola, said that the moon’s gravitational influence helps stabilise the Earth’s axial tilt. “Without the Moon’s gravity acting as an anchor, the Earth’s tilt and the geographic poles’ position would likely experience chaotic fluctuations,” he said.
The Moon’s tidal forces also cause small but cumulative effects, such as the gradual slowing of Earth’s rotation. These millisecond-level changes can only be noticed over a long period.
- Redistribution of mass on Earth
Oceanic, land, and atmospheric movement, which formed the Earth’s mass, can shift at intervals. Changes in ocean currents and wind patterns can alter how mass is distributed. An instance of such phenomena is when large ice sheets melt, causing the water body to spread into the ocean. This moves weight from the poles towards the middle of the Earth, generally making the planet spin a bit slower, making days longer.
The planet spins faster when mass moves closer to the Earth’s axis of rotation through an accumulation of ice sheets. Conversely, the spin slows down when mass moves away from the axis. Using satellite gravimetry, scientists detected mass ice gain over the Antarctic Ice Sheet between 2021 and 2023.
- Seismic activity and internal Earth movements
Big earthquakes and movements within the Earth’s mantle can move the ground and redistribute mass inside the planet, causing tiny, sudden changes in how fast the Earth spins. For example, big earthquakes in Chile (2010) and Japan (2011) shortened the day by a few microseconds.
Zemba Audu, a professor of climatology at Modibbo Adama University, Yola, said human activities such as releasing industrial gases, deforestation, and various other actions alter the atmosphere and contribute to climate change. These activities lead to changes in temperature and rainfall patterns.
He revealed that these climate change activities and their consequences can affect Earth’s rotation speed. “The Earth’s rotation affects the wind’s motion as it moves around on its surface, whether it is a hurricane, a wild wind, or so on. At some point, it could be faster or slower,” he said.
As Nigeria rarely experiences earthquakes or hurricanes, Zemba said these consequences often manifest in droughts, heat waves, and excessive rainfall, leading to flooding in the country.
Is July 9, 2025, Earth’s shortest day so far?
Many Facebook pages claimed that the latest incident is the shortest in modern-day humanity’s history. Scientists have documented instances of the Earth spinning faster than average when atomic clocks began measuring time with extraordinary precision in the 1960s. Some special tools used to measure include Very Long Baseline Interferometry (VLBI), which uses radio antennas worldwide to watch distant stars. Another is Satellite Laser Ranging (SLR), which bounces lasers off satellites in space. These tools help scientists track Earth’s movements with great accuracy. Some of the recent days in modern-day records include,
- June 29, 2022: The day was 1.59 milliseconds shorter than usual, leaving the date with 86,398.41 seconds.
- Jul. 26, 2022: The day was 1.50 milliseconds short, and the date spanned 86,398.5 seconds.
- Jul. 5, 2024: The Earth set a new record with a day 1.66 milliseconds shorter.
- Jul. 10, 2025: The current record for the calendar year 2025, with a day approximately 1.37 milliseconds shorter than 24 hours.
The more milliseconds deducted from a full day’s length of 86,400 seconds, the shorter the day becomes. Therefore, deducting 1.66 milliseconds made July 5, 2024, last for 86,398.34 seconds. So far in 2025, July 10 has 86,398.63 seconds left.
Available records from the International Earth Rotation and Reference Systems Services (IERS) suggest that the shortest day in Earth’s history is Jul. 5, 2024. Meanwhile, July 22 and August 5 are other days that will experience shorter days in 2025.
Conclusion
Contrary to some posts, Earth’s shortest day is July 5, 2024. Data from the International Earth Rotation and Reference Systems Services (IERS) revealed that the duration of 2025’s July 9, at 1.37 milliseconds, fell short by a small margin.
