Polar Shift: Mystery with the fastest movement of the magnetic north pole

Η north pole movement speed has grown even more in recent years as it is rapidly moving towards Siberia.

Ο magnetic north pole of the Earth, on which navigators have relied for centuries on their orientation and more recently used from airplanes to "smart" mobile phone applications, it is now moving at an unprecedented rate in recorded history, according to scientists.

It now crosses the Arctic at a speed of about 50 kilometers per year and shows no signs of slowing down in its "gait".

«The movement since the 1990s has become faster than ever before for at least four centuries, without really knowing much about the changes in the Earth's core that are causing this movementThe geophysicist and geomagnetic expert at the British Geological Survey told the Financial Times.

This rapid movement of the magnetic pole (which differs from the corresponding geographic pole) is reflected in the revised version of the Global Magnetic Model released a few days ago by the British Geological Survey and the US National Environmental Information Centers. Combined with satellite data such as GPS, this model is the foundation of modern navigation, and frequent revisions are necessary.

From the 16th century, when the first magnetic fields were recorded, until the late 1990s, the magnetic north pole had a relatively steady course, as it slowly wandered around the Canadian Arctic region. But then he accelerated his movement and began a new course towards the north pole.

Its speed has increased even more in recent years, as it is rapidly heading towards Siberia. In 2019, the north magnetic pole passed 390 kilometers or about three degrees from the north geographic pole and for the first time crossed the Greenwich meridian.

The magnetic field of the Earth is born as in the case of a dynamo, as molten iron moves through the bowels of our planet and creates electric currents. However, it is not clear to scientists why the magnetic field has been showing more mobility and less predictability lately. The fact that molten iron is about 3.000 kilometers below the Earth's surface obviously makes it difficult to study the phenomenon.

The new global Magnetic Model also confirms that the Earth's magnetic field weakens by about 5% each century. If this continues, a reversal of the field may occur (with the north magnetic pole replacing the south and vice versa), something that has happened several times in the past. The last time it was about 780.000 years ago, according to the Earth's geological "archive".

Based on the estimate that reversals occur on average every about 500.000 years, a new reversal appears to have been delayed. No one can say for sure what exactly the effects will be in the reversal phase. However, given that the magnetic field protects the Earth from solar and cosmic radiation, it is possible that there will be worrying effects on human civilization.

Until the magnetic chaos of the transition phase of the pole reversal subsides, living beings and various critical technological infrastructures (satellites, airplanes, electrical networks, etc.) can be exposed to harmful radiation. However, few geophysicists consider such a reversal possible in the next few centuries.

As for the more immediate future, scientists have no idea how much longer the north magnetic pole will continue its same or another "crazy" course and at what speed. Surprisingly, on the other side of the Earth, the south magnetic pole has remained almost constant for decades.

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