Recently, magnetic compasses at Greenwich pointed directly at true north for the first time in 360 years. This is currently happening in Western Australia too. But what does it mean?
The research vessel must dodge dangerous icebergs as it drills for sediment core samples.
Phil Christie/IODP
A paleooceanographer describes her ninth sea expedition, this time retrieving cylindrical ‘cores’ of the sediment and rock that’s as much as two miles down at the ocean floor.
Barkly Pass, the stratotype for the Elliot Formation. These beautiful rocks hold ancient secrets.
Lara Sciscio
The earth’s own magnetic field offers a useful way to measure the age of rocks - information that can help unpack ancient events and aid our understanding of the present.
Are we headed to a magnetic reversal and all the global disruption that would bring? Enter archaeomagnetism. A look at the archaeological record in southern Africa provides some clues.
The Earth’s magnetic field is hugely important to our survival.
NASA Goddard Space Flight Centre/Flickr