Flipping poles: Studies suggest that the Earth's magnetic field (pictured) is reducing, of concern because it protects us from the ravages of solar wind. Credit: NASA
SYDNEY: A reversal of the Earth’s magnetic poles could happen sooner than we think, according to Dutch scientists who report that the planet’s magnetic field is becoming gradually less stable.
A reversal could affect everything from navigation and communications equipment to the composition of the atmosphere, say experts.
The report, published today in the U.K. journal Nature Geoscience, found that reversals have been far more common in the last 200 million years than they were deep in the planet’s history.
Wandering poles
Researchers, led by Andrew Biggin of the University of Utrecht in the Netherlands, made the discovery by analysing rocks formed between 2.45 to 2.82 billion years ago.
The story of the Earth’s magnetic field is written in rocks over time. Because these rocks become ‘magnetised’ at the time of their formation, scientists can discover which direction the poles were facing and how strong the Earth’s magnetic field was at that time.
The magnetic poles wander around the vicinity of the geographic poles all the time – the north magnetic pole currently resides in the Canadian Arctic. However, at relatively regular intervals throughout the 4.5 billion year history of the planet, the magnetic poles have flipped completely. A few thousand years before a reversal, the magnetic field gradually gets weaker; something which could cause problems for inhabitants of the planet.
“The Earth’s magnetic field is important for shielding the atmosphere, and us, from damage caused by the solar wind,” explained Biggin. “It’s also used by us and other species for navigation”. An increase in solar wind would disrupt communications equipment and power grids.
Current records suggest that we are long overdue for our next reversal, he said. “On average, there is a reversal around every 400,000 years, but this varies a lot.” The geological record suggests that the last reversal was around 800,000 years ago.
Furthermore, there is already evidence to show that the field has been weakening over the last few centuries – some archaeological remains suggest that the field was far stronger in the time of the Roman Empire, some 2,000 years ago.
Don’t throw away your compass
Don’t throw away your compass just yet though – major changes may not even happen in our lifetimes. “The reversal process is very unpredictable,” said Biggin. “We could be heading into a reversal in the next few centuries, or we might be waiting another million years”.
Even then, reversal is a slow process, which can take some thousands of years to complete.
But what about the effect on living organisms? Another paper, published in Nature in March suggested that some species that rely on the field for navigation or orientation have taken a knock from pole reversals in the past.
Author David Gubbins, of the University of Leeds in England, said that some single-celled organisms that relied on magnetism to tell up from down likely went extinct during past reversals. Human beings have survived reversals in the past, however, added Gubbins, “so we are likely to come through the next one unscathed.”
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I always used to get my Arctic and Antarctic confused; I guess it won’t matter soon!
D.T.
Would this kind of thing effect electronic technologies? If so that could be, um, interesting…
Is this not something that should be happening in 2012? I do not remember much but, there was something about our solar system will be in the center most part of the milky way galaxy and the sun will change it’s polar axis again and it may pull us enough to change our axis again.
If you wanna read about 2012, go to tribe.net with the rest of the new age whackos. There you can read about 5,000 mutually exclusive things going to happen that they heard from their dealer according to burned out hippies.
Cetaceans use magnetic field lines to migrate. The fact that more and more whales are beaching themselves all the time is further evidence that the magnetic field is going through some changes.
Maybe cetaceans just want to grow legs and enjoy club night life? In Tokyo.
That proves no such thing.
The article says that the last reversal was 800,000 years ago and then goes on to reassure readers that humans have survived reversals in the past–but, um, last time I checked homo sapiens sapiens was less than 200,000 years old as a species…
If your going by Precession every 25,826.4 years. However galactic orbit gives us ice ages and tropical ages. The one thing that maters is when and what to do when the magnetic reversal and pole reversal happens. Maybe it will be a planet that hits us. Something will get us. So plan for the end of the world, but hope for nothing to come of it.
I seem to remember being informed that Wooly mammoths were browsing on tropical grasses. when one afternoon they were suddenly transported to the arctic region.
Now this could have happened during one of these magnetic anomolies.
Perhaps the outer crust of the earth(which happens to be suspended upon a slippery lake of magma, some what like the ice on a pond.came in contact with what lays below it. An iron ball called the core which just happens to be turning at a differant speed and direction. I am sure this ball is not smooth any more than the underside of the crust.
With the right planetry alighnments causing a high tide of solids and liquids. The outer crust could get rotated into a new position by the underside coliding with the core.
GF
Either the earth has moved or my compass is faulty. I have lived in my home in Worcester Park Surrey England for the last 20 years and it has always had a garden facing north-west. I have not checked my garden with the compass for a couple of years or so. A neigbour dispute about loss of light made me check it again yesterday. According to the compass, my garden is now facing due west! I tried again this morning, still due west. Has anyone else experienced similar? Would this be a fast polar reversal?
This is due to the US using their HARRP program and their ‘new’ radar.
The whales are sensitive to the microwaves and go crazy trying to get away from it. Protests have been filed, but the Bush administration doesn’t care what affect their new technology has on the whales (or anyone else for that matter).
Might I respectfully suggest that you acquire a new compass? It might be *that* which is faulty…
Maybe this is why the honeybees and the bats are getting lost and dying. If it isn’t a pole reversal, then it’s cell phone towers. In fact, maybe cell phone towers are causing the reversal.
Why would they make a stupid statement like that??!!
wot a load of dogs bollox,cant wait for 2012,am buying new deckchair,new telescope to watch galatic fireworks,dont fry your eyeballs,cos u will need them when this show is over, also get a beer keg, bring it on baby L.O.L.
does this mean i have only 3 years left on my morgtage repayments.ha,ha, try that one with your bank manager,dont blame me if he gives ya a black eye!!. i cant stop laughing, lads stop watching star wars,it affecting your small brains,L.O.L.
http://berkeley.edu/news/media/releases/2003/06/11_idaltu.shtml
The quoted author debunks the article – if u can’t research a simple known fact u loose all credibility.
They may be talking about Homo erectus, which existed 2 million years ago.
Good Point Paco
hey im on summer vacation, going to be a sophmore in highschool soon. my teacher mentioned this ut insisted i had to look it up on my own time and its been driving me nuts! u guys give me alot to think about arguing ur points and i appriciate that.
Have we not learned that science is always changing as new information is discovered. Unless it goes against public opinion or against the political hierarchy.
Politics and ego do not belong in science circles, as science is supposed to be based on proven facts as theory is just an idea based on some factual data.
Would a pole shift happen in an instant or slowley over time?
Opinions of science should not be portrayed as fact.(as an educated guess is still a guess)
The oldest human fossil found (named Lucy and found in Ethiopia) has been back dated to between 3 and 3.6 million years ago. Lucy was not a Homo Sapien, but we do know that she was a hominid, she walked upright. Chances are our species are direct desendants of Lucy’s species.
If you want to get specific, the first Homo Sapien walked the Earth around 200,000 years ago, but no one is really quite sure about that. The reason being that it is difficult to find fossils. The earliest Homo Sapien found to date is 200,000 years old but that’s not to say a Homo Sapien could be found that dates back 400,000 years or longer!
Some will even claim that Homo Sapiens have only been on the Earth for about 100,000 years. If that’s the case it is trtuly remarkable how far we have come in such a short time, well I guess if we’ve been here 200,000 years that’s remarkable too. After all Dinosaurs were on the Earth for 250 million years, and what did they get done?
We wouldn’t be around to notice. the only thige between us and a thermonucular explosion occuring 24/7 (our sun) is the magnetosphere. If we could go underground and eat mushrooms we may survive. Otherwise there’s not much chance.
I think the reference was to homo erectus
LOL yep that doesnt make sense at all!
I heard some scientists at the liquor store the other day say that if the poles shift your playstation games will be all messed up and you will have to turn your TV upside down to play them.
Actually,
The increase in beached whales is caused by the influx of sub-sea level activity being created by the extra terrestrials. the ships flying out of the water scares the shit of the whales. they’re like “nah ah motha fucka im gettin out this ocean nowz”. I’m paraphrasing of course but the point remains that unless we finally unite as a species and overthrow these rude reptilian pieces of shit, BEFORE nibiru crawls out of the hole it’s hiding in and starts throwing altoids at us, the whales won’t be the only creature pwnd by obama and his evil NWO agenda. I mean, the altoids will taste good, but eventually they will build up and our whole planet will taste curiously strong. plants will die, the new government established in order to handle the crisis will start a lotto to decide who lives and who gets eaten. the population will dwindle down to hundreds, conveniently all centered around washington DC. THIS IS WHERE HARRP COMES IN!!!! they switch on harrp, and the sky starts to pour. the 40 days and 40 nights of rain washes away the altoids, plants start growing, deers & a rainbow come out of nowhere, and the NWO begins. All that is left is for Obama to impregnate every woman on earth, ensuring his legacy lives on forever and he is forever known as the second coming of christ.
I wouldn’tworry too much about polar reversal causing human extinction. Human Extinction is more likely to occur from human hands itself. With our vast stock piling of weapons of mass destruction, especially by the USA itself (funny though there several years ago US was accusing Iraq of stock piling WMD), it is more likely that USA will be the very cause of human extinction.
Lit me get the just of this Article. Overdue pole swap
Last time I checked terms like imminent with in days , should have happen last week ,month maybe last year .These articles that keep guessing about the past and the future of our planet are a weak use of time and resources .Can’t change it stop it or plan for it . Doomsday it sales add space and that’s it .people are going to be on this pant tell we are no longer on this planet .Let’s all work on fixing what we know and quit wasting resources on what we can’t fix or stop
So if the poles reverse does that mean that men no longer need viagra and women no longer need bra’s? I feel a little sad for the pharmaceutical companies.
far out
Was it carbon dated? Because the most scientists can carbon date back to is around 20-30k years. And even then it’s not 100% accurate. The only reason they ‘say’ things are millions of years old is to keep their grants coming and their paychecks. Research it if you don’t believe me.
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