There are large holes in the Earth's magnetic field over the
Atlantic and the Arctic, indicating that the north and south
poles may be getting ready to reverse positions in a magnetic
flip. This would produce a period of chaos, when compasses
no longer point north, migrating animals head in the wrong
direction and satellites are burned up by solar radiation.
There have already been recent cases where migrating birds
ended up in strange places, far from their regular
destinations. The speed of the change has surprised
scientists.
In the January 13 Sunday Times of London, Jonathan Leake
writes that the Danish Orsted satellite first noted the holes.
The Earth's magnetic fields are generated by currents of
molten iron flowing around the solid core. Sometimes giant
holes form in the liquid metal and this can change or even
reverse the magnetic fields above them. Andy Jackson, a
specialist in geomagnetism, says, "Such flips normally happen
every 500,000 years, but it has been 750,000 years since the
last one," so we're overdue.
The magnetosphere protects the Earth from solar radiation
that could sterilize everything on the surface. Although the
magnetic field won't disappear, it may get weaker while the
poles switch. The resulting surge in radiation could cause
cancer, reduce crop yields and confuse migrating animals.
Have pole flips and other Earth events caused chaos in the
past that has been passed down to us as
Legend?
