Why does magnetic north shift

By sampling these rocks and using radiometric dating techniques, it has been possible to reconstruct the history of Earth's magnetic field for roughly the last million years. Geomagnetic pole reversals have happened throughout Earth's history. The last one occurred , years ago.

Though they sound scary, pole flips can take a long time to occur and pose no immediate threat. Celebrate science by becoming a citizen scientist with NCEI. Several scientific projects we host benefit from public. Magnetic navigation has continued to improve.

The CrowdMag app, which. Earth's magnetic north pole has shifted away from Canada and closer to Siberia at a rapid pace in recent years. Researchers believe two massive blobs of molten iron in Earth's outer core may have spurred the runaway pole.

There's no telling where it will end up. The magnetic north pole just isn't where it used to be. More Cool Science. The magnetic north pole has shifted over time since scientists first identified its location in Livermore et al. Nature Geoscience Before You Go Jennifer Leman Jennifer Leman is a science journalist and news editor at Popular Mechanics, where she writes and edits stories about science and space.

This content is created and maintained by a third party, and imported onto this page to help users provide their email addresses. The second image shows changes in that field over the same period. Though the colors in the second image are just as bright as the first, note that the greatest changes were plus or minus nanotesla in a field that reaches 60, nanotesla. Supercomputer models of Earth's magnetic field.

On the left is a normal dipolar magnetic field, typical of the long years between polarity reversals. On the right is the sort of complicated magnetic field Earth has during the upheaval of a reversal. Geomagnetic polarity over the past million years, trailing off into the Jurassic Quiet Zone.

Dark areas denote periods of normal polarity, light areas denote reverse polarity. Credit: Public domain. The Sun expels a constant outflow of particles and magnetic fields known as the solar wind and vast clouds of hot plasma and radiation called coronal mass ejections. Credit: NASA.