Earth’s Magnetic North Pole Is On the Move Towards Russia, Here’s Why

Amaze Lab

Earth has a magnetic field, including two magnetic poles North and South. However, despite it being a seeming constant, experts say humans have been tracking those points for centuries and they are actually moving.

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00:00Earth has a magnetic field, including two magnetic poles, North and South.

00:08However, despite it being a seeming constant, experts say humans have been tracking those

00:12points for centuries, and they are actually moving.

00:15This is nothing new, with experts having tracked the magnetic north to the northern coast of

00:19Canada and more recently into the Atlantic Ocean in the 90s.

00:22However, now it's on the move again, heading towards Siberia in Russia.

00:26Historically, the magnetic north pole has moved at a rate of around 6 miles per year.

00:30However, since the turn of the century, it's sped up.

00:34Experts say at that point, it started moving at a rate of around 34 miles per year, slowing

00:38down to 22 miles a year more recently.

00:41So is this going to literally throw off every compass on the planet?

00:43Well, yes and no.

00:45The position of true north versus the magnetic north pole will certainly be at odds.

00:49However, those using traditional compasses should be aware of magnetic declination and

00:53adjust accordingly.

00:54For the rest of us, digital pathfinding using GPS is adjusted by the British Geological

00:59Survey and the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

01:03So no need to worry.

01:04The magnetic north pole moves because the Earth's innards are liquid, meaning its

01:08outer core has a constantly moving layer of conductive material, which generates an electric

01:13current.

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