Quake Moves Japan Closer to U.S.

The earthquake in Japan appears to have brought the country and the United States closer together, and not just metaphorically speaking: The area of the country hit by the quake jumped 13 feet closer to the U.S., says The New York Times. A coastal stretch of Japan also sunk two feet—which allowed the tsunami to travel further inland. NASA also says the quake shortened the day by a couple millionths of a second and tilted Earth’s axis.