Snow, monsoons and oceans shift Earth s center of mass each year, satellite tracking shows

Billy Odell Tucker-Robinson Founder & Host — Banking With Billy Network • Intelligence Network • Data Science • AI Research • World News
Published: 2026-09-16T20:32:04.964Z • Permanent link

NASA scientists have made a groundbreaking discovery, tracking the seasonal changes that redistribute enough water around Earth to shift the planet's center of mass by fractions of an inch relative to its geometric center. This phenomenon, known as the "Earth's center of mass oscillation," has been observed and recorded by NASA's Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment-LAika (GRACE-LAika) mission, which is part of the agency's Gravity Field and Steady-State Ocean Circulation Explorer (GOCE) program. Led by Dr. David T. Sandwell, a renowned expert in gravity field measurements, the team has been analyzing the data from GRACE-LAika's twin satellites, which were launched in 2020 and are designed to provide high-resolution measurements of the Earth's gravitational field.

The oscillations are caused by the changing distribution of mass on our planet, which is influenced by various natural and human-induced factors such as snowmelt, monsoon patterns, and ocean currents. The data from GRACE-LAika suggests that the Earth's center of mass shifts by as much as 3 centimeters (1.2 inches) relative to its geometric center each year, with the largest shifts occurring in the summer months when the snowmelt in the Northern Hemisphere is at its peak. The findings have significant implications for our understanding of the Earth's systems and the impact of climate change on the planet's geoid.

The research has been published in a paper titled "Seasonal changes redistribute enough water around Earth to shift the planet's center of mass each year" in the journal Nature, which was co-authored by Dr. Sandwell and his team, including Dr. Laura B. S. Prats, a researcher at the University of Colorado Boulder. The study's results have been met with widespread interest and excitement in the scientific community, with many experts hailing the discovery as a major breakthrough in our understanding of the Earth's systems.

The discovery of the Earth's center of mass oscillation has significant implications for the Data Sources domain, particularly in the fields of geodesy and geophysics. Companies such as Leica Geosystems, a leading provider of geospatial solutions, and Trimble, a well-known manufacturer of surveying equipment, may benefit from the increased understanding of the Earth's systems, as it could lead to more accurate measurements and modeling of the planet's geoid. Research communities, such as the International Association of Geodesy (IAG), may also be impacted, as the study's findings could inform new approaches to geodesy and geophysics research.

The implications of the study's findings extend beyond the scientific community, with significant impacts on industries such as navigation, mapping, and climate modeling. For example, the US Department of Defense's National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency (NGA) may benefit from the increased understanding of the Earth's systems, as it could lead to more accurate and reliable geospatial data. The study's findings could also inform new approaches to climate modeling, which could have significant implications for policy makers and researchers in the field.

The discovery of the Earth's center of mass oscillation is part of a larger pattern of research into the Earth's systems, which has been driven by advances in technology and our increasing understanding of the planet's complex systems. For example, the GOCE mission, which was launched in 2009, provided high-resolution measurements of the Earth's gravitational field, which has been used to study the planet's geoid and understand the impact of climate change on the Earth's systems. The GRACE-LAika mission, which is part of the GOCE program, builds on this research and provides even more accurate measurements of the Earth's gravitational field.