Title and Abstract for Norm's talk:
The
effect
of
thermal
tides
on
Earth's
rotation
rate
I
will
discuss
the
spin
history
of
Earth,
including
Lunar
and
Solar
ocean
tides,
and
the
Solar
thermal
tide.
I
will
describe
the
physics
of
the
thermal
tide.
Then,
using
geologic
and
paleontological
data,
I
will
show
that
the
thermal
tide
on
Earth
has
had
a
significant
and
clearly
detected
effect
on
the
length
of
day,
a
possibility
first
discussed
by
Kelvin.
If
there
is
sufficient
time,
I
will
briefly
describe
how
thermal
tides
can
prevent
planets
from
becoming
tidally
locked
to
their
host
stars,
as
was
long
ago
suggested
to
be
the
case
with
Venus.
I
will
also
describe
work
showing
that
this
is
true
even
for
planets
with
much
less
massive
atmospheres
than
that
of
Venus,
including
planets
similar
to
Earth,
and
even
Mars.