Eli5 Is the earth getting bigger?

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With the massive rifts that have occurred from the earthquake in Turkey, is the movement of the tectonic plates increasing the diameter, even temporarily?

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14 Answers

Anonymous 0 Comments

Thank you everyone! That was enlightening.

Anonymous 0 Comments

Thank you everyone! That was enlightening.

Anonymous 0 Comments

Yes, but it’s not really substantial. We’re bombarded by about 30,000 tones of micrometeorites each year.

Anonymous 0 Comments

Yes, but it’s not really substantial. We’re bombarded by about 30,000 tones of micrometeorites each year.

Anonymous 0 Comments

Diameter? hard to tell.

Weight? yes/no. yes cause we gain more mass from the space, and no cause we lose mass to the space everytime (gas).

Anonymous 0 Comments

Diameter? hard to tell.

Weight? yes/no. yes cause we gain more mass from the space, and no cause we lose mass to the space everytime (gas).

Anonymous 0 Comments

No.

If land rises in one area it falls in another. Earthquakes don’t create more stuff. They just rearrange what’s there.

Also: the Earth is almost 8,000 miles or 12,800 kilometers in diameter, and if an earthquake caused land to rise by 10 meters/yards that’s only 0.00001% of the Earth’s diameter.

But yes, the Earth is constantly getting bigger from all of the space dust and meteors that are constantly falling, [about 50 tons per day](https://solarsystem.nasa.gov/asteroids-comets-and-meteors/meteors-and-meteorites/overview/)

Anonymous 0 Comments

No.

If land rises in one area it falls in another. Earthquakes don’t create more stuff. They just rearrange what’s there.

Also: the Earth is almost 8,000 miles or 12,800 kilometers in diameter, and if an earthquake caused land to rise by 10 meters/yards that’s only 0.00001% of the Earth’s diameter.

But yes, the Earth is constantly getting bigger from all of the space dust and meteors that are constantly falling, [about 50 tons per day](https://solarsystem.nasa.gov/asteroids-comets-and-meteors/meteors-and-meteorites/overview/)

Anonymous 0 Comments

I suppose technically the density is constantly changing slightly, but nothing anywhere near noticeable.

Earth does grow slightly from space debris colliding, and shrinks slightly from gases leaving.

Overall though it’s a pretty set bubble of matter that just shifts around a bit.

Anonymous 0 Comments

I suppose technically the density is constantly changing slightly, but nothing anywhere near noticeable.

Earth does grow slightly from space debris colliding, and shrinks slightly from gases leaving.

Overall though it’s a pretty set bubble of matter that just shifts around a bit.