Find solution
When the Earth's Magnetic Poles swap?

Reversals of Earths magnetic poles?

  • I know that the magnetic field of earth( North and south poles) will eventually flip. My question is that if they flip, will it be over a week, a year, 10000 years? and what effect will it have on humans and animals? I have heard and radiation, and birds getting confused. other than that, is there anything that might effect life on earth on a large scale? I also heard that the axis of rotation might swtich. Is this true? if it is, what effect will this have in life? Thanks sooooooooo much!

  • Answer:

    There was a recent Nova program that said a magnetic reversal had been captured in a lava flow, so that it had reversed while the lava was cooling. On the other hand, they also indicate that the reversals take place as localized anomalies, so that only the area of the volcano may have reversed. More info at http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/magnetic/reversals.html

Sarbazei... at Yahoo! Answers Visit the source

Was this solution helpful to you?

Other answers

Since the mechanism of the generation of the Earth's magnetic field is not fully understood, then neither is the reversal mechanism, so any answer is a reasoned guess rather than a deduction. Based on the relatively small changes in the axis and intensity of the field since accurate observations began, say 150 years approximately, it seems unreasonable to suppose that it could completely reverse in any less than about a thousand years. However, based on an estimated half million years between reversals, if the reversal took much longer than about ten thousand years to complete, there would not be such an overwhelming preponderance of axially-magnetised geomagnetic specimens. I have seen some web sites talking complete nonsense about a possible reversal of the axis of rotation. From the conservation of angular momentum, this is completely implausible.

bh8153

Related Q & A:

Just Added Q & A:

Find solution

For every problem there is a solution! Proved by Solucija.

  • Got an issue and looking for advice?

  • Ask Solucija to search every corner of the Web for help.

  • Get workable solutions and helpful tips in a moment.

Just ask Solucija about an issue you face and immediately get a list of ready solutions, answers and tips from other Internet users. We always provide the most suitable and complete answer to your question at the top, along with a few good alternatives below.