Earth’s Magnetic Poles are not going to flip

The anomaly of the magnetic pole in the South Atlantic does not indicate the approach of a change of poles. The study of samples showed that over the past 9 thousand years, similar phenomena have been observed repeatedly. They did not lead to global cataclysms.

Earth’s magnetic pole. Source: ESA/ATG medialab

Anomaly in the South Atlantic and Earth’s magnetic poles

Some time ago, an anomaly was found in the South Atlantic. On a fairly large part of the surface of the ocean and land, the Earth’s magnetic pole has greatly weakened. Many believed that this phenomenon is a harbinger of the future change of poles on our planet.

The source of the magnetic pole is the movement of masses of matter in the depths of our planet. Exactly how these processes proceed is unknown. But sometimes the magnetic poles change places. The average interval between these events is about 200 thousand years.

But when exactly the next change will happen, no one knows. The North magnetic pole has been traveling quite fast in recent decades. The field itself has been weakening for 180 years. Theoretically, the change of poles can begin at any time. It will not have catastrophic consequences, but we need to be prepared for it.

Magnetic pole anomaly in the South Atlantic. Source: Wikipedia

Change in the magnetic pole over the past 9 thousand years

In order to find out how familiar the current situation is for the Earth’s magnetic pole, scientists decided to investigate precisely dated samples of lava and ceramics around the world. When a plastic mineral substance hardens at high temperature, at the micro level, some particles line up along magnetic lines. Something similar is also observed on Mercury.

There is a kind of record of the state of the Earth’s magnetic pole. Scientists examined a bunch of samples over the past 9 thousand years and came to the conclusion that changes in it occurred regularly. Anomalies similar to those located in the South Atlantic have occurred repeatedly, but never once did it lead to a change of poles. You can read more about this in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

The current anomaly is likely to disappear in the next 300 years. What is the reason for its occurrence is unknown. It is quite possible that the magnetosphere of our planet is thus affected by the flows of matter in the mantle layers closest to the crust. 

According to Рhys.org

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