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Earth's magnetic poles on verge of flipping?

 
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mike
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Joined: 30 Dec 2002
Posts: 3134

PostPosted: 12/13/2003, 12:43 am    Post subject: Earth's magnetic poles on verge of flipping? Reply to topic Reply with quote

wnd.com wrote:
Earth's magnetic poles on verge of flipping?
Physicists say planet's protective field weakening, problems possible with navigation, ozone layer

© 2003 WorldNetDaily.com

The Earth's magnetic field is weakening, and that could lead to a flip in the planet's poles making compasses point south instead of north for the first time in almost a million years, say scientists.

Experts at the American Geophysical Union in San Francisco say the field has declined 10 percent in the last 150 years, and suggest a reversal could lead to problems in navigation and a jump in cancer rates with a diminished ozone layer.

"Is a reversal coming? Yeah, it's coming for sure – sometime,'' said geologist Robert Coe of the University of California-Santa Cruz, according to the San Jose Mercury News.

Physicists say the average period between pole flips is about 200,000 years, and the last one is believed to have taken place 780,000 years ago, making the next swap long overdue.

According to Harvard University's Jeremy Bloxham, the field could disappear completely within the next 2,000 years if the rate of decline remains constant, but he's not certain if the poles will actually reverse.

"Chances are this is going to die out," he said, reports the San Mateo County Times. "Reversals are pretty rare."

If a flip did take place, it would be over the course of several thousand years, and scientists say it would likely reduce the protective ozone layer, cause glitches in satellites and electronic products, and create a flurry of navigational anomalies as compasses would "cease to be a simple means of navigation," according to Bloxham.

The consequences would be the same if a reversal takes place or the field continues to diminish, with one researcher estimating an additional 100,000 cancer cases annually as people would be subject to more of the sun's harmful rays.

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plummer150





Joined: 04 Jan 2003
Posts: 542
Location: Jersey City, New Jersey

PostPosted: 12/13/2003, 1:40 am    Post subject: re: Reply to topic Reply with quote

Good stuff, however, I don't believe something like this could actually happen regardless of all the facts supporting it. Until it really happens, I still think it's impossible. But for those of you who do believe it could happen, here are some links to support your farce....or hypothesis.

http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/magnetic/timeline.html
http://observer.guardian.co.uk/international/story/0,6903,837058,00.html
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/magnetic/reve-drives.html
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/magnetic/reversals.html
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/magnetic/animals.html
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bzachar





Joined: 10 Feb 2003
Posts: 88
Location: Mesa, AZ

PostPosted: 12/13/2003, 8:51 am    Post subject: Reply to topic Reply with quote

Quote:
...within the next 2,000 years ...

I'll start charging my GPS batteries now.
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