Dispelling Myths About Geomagnetic Reversal

UniverseToday has an interesting look at geomagnetic reversal, the process in which the Earth’s magnetic poles trade places. The article cites known trends and recent studies to debunk doomsday myths and unsubstantiated claims about the process. One such study is attempting to model the earth’s core with a 26-ton ball of molten metal. Another recently found evidence that the Earth has a second, weaker magnetic field. We do know that this magnetic pole flip-flop has occurred many times in the last few million years; the last occurred 780,000 years ago according to ferromagnetic sediment. A few scaremongering articles have said geomagnetic reversal occurs with ‘clockwork regularity’ — this is simply not true — via Slashdot