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A group of scientists from the United States have come up with an innovative proposal to generate electricity by harnessing the energy of the Earth’s rotation. The ambitious idea aims to create a new form of clean and sustainable energy by exploiting the planet’s natural movements.
A group of researchers in the United States may have taken a curious step in the field of renewable energy. They tested the theory that it would be possible to generate electricity from the Earth's own rotation. The trio of physicists is made up of Christopher Chyba, Kevin Hand and Thomas Chyba.
They are linked to Princeton University, the Aerospace Propulsion Laboratory, CIT Jet and the company Spectral Sensor Solutions. The study was published in the journal Physical Review Research.
The idea is not new. Scientists have been exploring this possibility for almost ten years. In 2016, they even published a similar article.
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But at the time, the proposal was criticized. The main objection was that even if some kind of voltage were generated, it would end up being canceled out due to the rearrangement of the electrons.
This time, the group tried to get around the problem. They wanted to know what would happen if the voltage cancellation was prevented. To do this, they built a very specific device.
The special cylinder
The equipment used in the experiment was a cylinder made of manganese-zinc ferrite, a type of weakly conductive material.
It acted as a magnetic shield. The researchers placed the cylinder in a north-south position and tilted it at an angle of 57°.
This left it perpendicular to both the Earth's rotation and the planet's magnetic field.
Electrodes were placed at the ends of the cylinder to measure the energy. To avoid interference, even the lights were turned off in the laboratory. The aim was to eliminate photoelectric effects.
The result was surprising. The researchers measured 18 microvolts of electricity passing through the cylinder. According to them, there was no other source that could explain this generation. The most likely explanation would be the rotation of the Earth.
First steps
The scientists were careful. They considered other factors, such as the temperature difference between the ends of the cylinder. They also performed tests with other cylinders and angles. In these situations, no voltage was measured.
Still, they admit that the results need to be confirmed. Other groups will have to repeat the experiment, under different conditions, to ensure that there is no error or external interference.
But if what has been observed is real, the potential is enormous. Even with a very low electricity generation in this first test, physicists believe it is possible to scale up production to useful levels in the future.
