2.46 Billion Years ago, a day on Earth was Only 17 Hours and the Moon was Much Closer - by PaulMattSutter
As the ages pass the Moon slowly drifts away from the Earth. In conjunction the length of our day gradually gets longer. For the first time astronomers have been able to estimate the length of the day and the distance to the Moon as it was almost two and a half billion years ago. Back then, our day was only 17 hours long.
As the Moon orbits the Earth it raises tides. These bulges stretch in the direction of the Moon and on the opposite side of the Earth. But the Earth is also spinning, and that rotation brings the bulge of the tide forward with respect to the current position. This lump gives an extra gravitational tug to the Moon, like an invisible leash pulling on our satellite. That gravitational tug boosts the Moon into a more distant orbit.
But the energy to boost to that orbit has to come from somewhere, and it comes from the rotation of the Earth. In the distant past our day was much shorter as the Earth spun much faster on its axis. But with every day that passes, it gets longer and longer.
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