The Earth’s magnetic North Pole is moving towards Russia at an accelerating pace, British scientists have discovered. They have been tracking the North Pole for centuries, which has relocated some 2,250 kilometres from Canada towards Siberia, according to Live Science. But its travel seems to have accelerated – between 1990 and 2005, the rate of movement increased from 15 kmph to 50-60 kmph. The magnetic North Pole is important for several reasons, such as navigation, protection from radiation and GPS used to create the World Magnetic Model.
However, the magnetic North Pole is different from the geographic North Pole, which stays the same as it is the place where all longitudinal lines converge.
What magnetic North Pole’s movement means?
The shifting of this crucial point is tracked by scientists from the UK to the US as it allows our smartphones and other devices to navigate.
“Planes, boats, submarines, you name it, it’s in there,” William Brown, the global geomagnetic field modeler at the British Geological Survey, said in an interview with The Times.
If the movement continues at this rapid pace, Earth’s magnetic North Pole will move by 660 kilometres in the next decade. This in turn will cause all compasses to “probably point eastward of true north” by 2040, according to scientists at the British Geological Survey (BGS).
South Pole is moving too
The same thing is happening with the Earth’s magnetic South Pole, which is drifting eastwards over Antarctica.
Scientists say the switch happens every 300,000 years. But the last swap or Earth poles happened 780,000 years ago, so experts say we are long overdue.
Why the poles are moving?
The molten iron in Earth’s outer core flows in unpredictable ways, causing the magnetic poles to shift.
“It’s like a giant cup of tea It’s a hot liquid with the viscosity of water,” Mr Brown told The Times.
When the poles switch, there comes a time when the magnetic shield shrinks to zero before growing again with the opposite polarity.
What happens if Earth’s magnetic field disappears?
The Earth’s magnetic field plays a crucial role in sustaining life and protecting technological systems. This invisible shield extends from the Earth’s interior out into space, forming a protective bubble and shielding the planet from solar wind, a stream of charged particles emanating from the Sun. But what if this vital magnetic field were to disappear? The consequences would be profound, affecting everything from the environment to human health and technology.
Without a shield, the deadly radiation would reach Earth thereby increasing the mutation rate of living cells and leading to cancers in animals.