First ever direct measurement of the Earth’s rotation Geodesists
are pinpointing the orientation of the Earth’s axis using the
world’s most stable ring laser A group with researchers at the
Technical University of Munich (TUM) and the Federal Agency for
Cartography and Geodesy (BKG) are the first to plot changes in
the Earth’s axis through laboratory measurements. To do this,
they constructed the world’s most stable ring laser in an
underground lab and used it to determine changes in the Earth’s
rotation. Previously, scientists were only able to track shifts
in the polar axis indirectly by monitoring fixed objects in
space. Capturing the tilt of the Earth’s axis and its rotational
velocity is crucial for precise positional information on Earth
– and thus for the accurate functioning of modern navigation
systems, for instance. The scientists’ work has been recognized
an Exceptional Research Spotlight by the American Physical
Society. The Earth wobbles. Like a spinning top touched in mid-
spin, its rotational ax