July 9th Is (Literally) Flying By — It's the Shortest Day Ever!

Feel like time’s been slipping through your fingers faster than a buttered Timbits box?
Well, you’re not imagining things. Today, July 9th, is officially the shortest day in recorded history — and no, it’s not just because your to-do list exploded.
According to the folks who study Earth’s mood swings (aka scientists), our lovely planet is spinning a little faster than usual. Why? Because the moon decided to switch things up. Its position has us whipping around just a smidge quicker.
How much faster? We’re talking a trim of 1.3 to 1.6 milliseconds off your standard 24-hour day. It’s barely enough time to blink, but it’s still enough to break a record — and give your internal clock an identity crisis.
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This isn’t Earth’s first spin freak-out, either. It’s the sixth time since 2020 that our planet’s rotation has sped up. (Honestly, relatable. Earth’s been anxious too.)
Mark your calendars: July 22 and August 5 are also expected to be turbo days, according to the International Earth Rotation and Reference Systems Service — yes, that’s a real organization, and no, they don’t just play with fancy clocks all day.
They’re prepping to deal with something called a “negative leap second” to help keep our timekeeping in line with Earth’s whirling ways.
The clock correction is expected to happen around 2029, which feels both far away and dangerously soon, depending on how many emails you’re behind on.
So if today felt like it flew by, don’t worry — it did. Time’s weird, space is weirder, and Earth’s just out here doing donuts in the galaxy.
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