The World Magnetic Model 2025 was published this week, providing the latest official data on the location of Earth’s magnetic fields. The model helps track the shift of the north magnetic pole, whose location is constantly changing. It will remain valid until the end of 2029, during which time the north magnetic pole will continue to move toward Russia.
The magnetic north pole is different from the geographic north pole. The geographic north pole is a fixed point at 90° north latitude. In contrast, the magnetic north pole is a point that is constantly shifting due to the movement of liquid metals in the Earth’s outer core. These metals, being in constant motion under the action of the hydromagnetic dynamo generate a magnetic field.
Due to changes in magnetic pole positions, NOAA and the British Geological Survey (BGS) regularly update their models. On December 17, an updated World Magnetic Model of High Resolution (WMMHR2025) was released. Its spatial resolution is about 300 km, which is much more accurate than the standard model with a resolution of 3300 km.
These updates are critical for technologies that depend on the Earth’s magnetic field. This is particularly true for compasses and satellite navigation systems such as GPS, which are widely used around the world. The new version of the model is also more accurate because it takes into account the accelerated motion of the north magnetic pole.
Since the 1830s, the magnetic north pole has moved 2,250 kilometers from Canada to Russia. Between 1990 and 2005, its rate of movement increased from 15 to 50-60 kilometers per year. In the last five years, however, the rate has slowed to 35 kilometers per year, the largest slowdown ever observed.
“The WMMHR2025 provides users with the most up-to-date information for accurate navigation over the next five years. The magnetic north is showing unusual behavior. It has been moving slowly around Canada since the 1500s but has accelerated towards Siberia over the last 20 years. We have never observed such a phenomenon before” – said Dr. William Brown, an expert in global geomagnetic modeling at the BGS.
Earlier we reported on how Earth’s magnetic poles are not about to flip over.
Provided by NOAA
