If the Earth were to suddenly stop spinning, what would happen?

I can't say this is fact, but wouldn't we fly off into outer space? That's just what I've heard.

	Iscariot -  1043 pts -  (3 years ago)
	Well, we'd be dead long before we were launched off, but the lack of spin would remove the gravitational pull that keeps us tethered.

The only reason we spin is due to gravity between the Earth and Sun. So it would just keep going I guess.

You answered your own question in a roundabout manner. Simply because of the laws of motion, it is physically impossible for the earth to suddenly stop moving. Momentum would carry it beyond the point of when it was originally going to stop moving. I also do not think there is friction in space, so I see no reason for it to slow down either.

days would get longer.

Something would have to of hit the Earth to get it to stop. Something with enough momentum to counter act the spinning bit. It would still be orbiting the Sun, its just seem like the sun was going very slowly and a day would become equivalent, in human time, to a year(night included[24hour scheme]).

	god -  4827 pts -  (3 years ago)
	odds are though, if anything had hit the earth with enough force to do that, we wouldn't be here to see the after affects.