It is slowly creeping towards Russia at a remarkably quicker pace than usual
Our planet’s magnetic North Pole has moved from northern Canada to the Arctic and is now on its way to Russia at a remarkably fast pace.
At the centre of our planet, in its outer core, there is a vast amount of molten iron, which, as the Earth spins, moves and produces a magnetic field.
So, our planet works as if there is an enormous magnet at its heart, and therefore it produces two main currents – north and south.
I’ll let the BBC explain it in further detail: “A compass needle is a very small, thin magnet. Today, the north pole of a compass needle points towards the ‘top’ of the Earth. This means that the top of the Earth must be acting as a South magnetic pole (unlike poles attract).
“Changing temperatures and the liquid iron flowing around the core cause the strength of the magnetic field to change but also cause the poles to switch places. Today, the top of the Earth is a South pole but in the past it has been a North pole.”
Adding: “Scientists have shown that there have been almost 200 pole switches in the last 100 million years. The last one was about 800,000 years ago.”
Okay, so that’s our magnetic field explained, now let’s talk about the ‘unexpected’ never-before-seen way the magnetic North pole could drastically affect our phones.
The magnetosphere is the series of magnetic fields that surround our planet (Getty stock)
Speaking to The Independent, global geomagnetic field modeller for the British Geological Survey (BGS) Dr William Brown explained that the magnetic pole is believed to have sat at the shore of northern Canada for centuries, but has crept into the Arctic Ocean by 1990s and is now slowly heading to Russia.
Now, I know what people might be worried Putin’s got something to do with this, but fortunately, he doesn’t. Instead, it is understood that fluctuations are triggered by solar storms and winds.
Brown further explained to the UK-based publication that our magnetic North Pole has drifted around 10km to 15km each year, which, to put that into perspective for New Yorkers, is about the distance as the crow flies between the Yankee Stadium and Brooklyn Bridge.
If it wasn’t for the World Magnetic Field we’d all be completely lost navigating smartphone maps (Getty stock)
But since the early 2000s till the end of the 2010s, it has increased dramatically to about 55km each year – the difference as the crow flies between Brooklyn Bridge and Stamford, Connecticut.
Now, it has slowed to 25km as it approaches Siberia, and has done for the last five years. That distance is roughly the Brooklyn Bridge, I don’t know why I’ve used that as the landmark for these comparisons, to Wakefield on the edge of New York City.
If nothing gets done it would render navigation on our phones almost useless, to be dramatic at least, but the World Magnetic Model, designed by the BGS along with the National Oceanic Atmospheric Administration, fortunately addresses these changes.
The model then provides assistance in the compasses on our smartphones.
“The world magnetic model is embedded in pretty much any piece of technology, from smartphones to cars and military jets,” Brown added.
