Originally moving faster, the Earth’s magnetic north pole crossed the prime meridian.
Identified in the Canadian Arctic Archipelago, the Earth’s magnetic North Pole has moved approximately 55 kilometers each year towards Siberia for the past 20 years. On December 10, the National Center for Environmental Information and the British Geological Survey announced the World Magnetic Field Model, which predicts that the North Pole will continue to move but at a slower pace (40 kilometers per year).
The Earth’s magnetic field is created by the movement of the outer layer of iron in the Earth’s core. For many reasons that have not been clearly explained, the Earth’s magnetic field is at a weak stage, causing the North Pole to shift.
In February, the magnetic North Pole was located at 86.54 degrees N and 170.88 degrees East in the Arctic Ocean. Likewise, the south magnetic pole does not coincide with the geographic south pole, located at 64.13 degrees south and 136.02 degrees east off the Antarctic Sea.
The global magnetic field model is updated every 5 years. The new model is expected to be announced in 2020, but scientists decided to announce it earlier because the movement of the magnetic north pole occurs too quickly.
The 2020 model shows “dark areas” around the magnetic north pole. In this region, the compass is no longer accurate because the magnetic north pole has shifted.
The model also shows that the magnetic north pole moved past the northeast of the Principal Meridian in September. The principal meridian is defined as a line marked 0 degrees, 0 hours and 0 minutes since 1884, passing through the Observatory. Royal Guard in Greenwich (UK).
It is not known if the north and south poles of the Earth will change places or if the magnetic field will be as strong as before. Both cases have happened in history and have not had much effect on organisms. However, modern 2-pole based positioning systems will need to readjust if the poles continue to drift. Airports must also rename runways that are positioned in the direction of the compass.
