Earth's magnetic field collapsing!

[Ned]

Originally posted by Shogun Gunner
I'm not a scientist, but I remember reading something on the subject that speculates that the flipping doesn't cause the magnetic field to disappear, just the polarity switching (as mentioend before).

Actually, it is this magnetic field that protects the earth from space debris, cosmic rays and the such. You are right on about that Ned. I don't believe the earth would be unprotected by a magnetic field polarity flip.

A flip that happens almost overnight would at most disrupt the birds and potentially wipe out all out sattelites, electronics and electrical systems on Earth. But if it is prolonged by weeks and months or even years, we are in for a world of hurt.

[Berzerker]

There is no evidence from the fossil record of these reversals causing extinctions or massive loss of life, so I doubt the field disappears during a reversal.

[Dr Strangelove]

Yeah we've already survived this soert of things many times over.

[November Adam]

Ha I'm reading a sci-fi book- Hominids, that mentions the flip and that the last time it happened was right around the time humans "awoke", and stopped being smart apes. It speculated that it was some 40,000 years ago.

Maybe we'll go back to sleep?

[Ned]

Originally posted by Berzerker
There is no evidence from the fossil record of these reversals causing extinctions or massive loss of life, so I doubt the field disappears during a reversal.

Good sign.

But, there may have been at least one "slow" reversal. I wonder what happend then?

[Sandman]

It's not "correlated" with the end of the mini ice age. They only started recording it then.

[Shogun Gunner]

Originally posted by Ned


Good sign.

But, there may have been at least one "slow" reversal. I wonder what happend then?

I don't think there's ever been a "slow" reverse. From what I understand, it's an instantaneous switch.

I think we are in more danger from projectiles hitting the earth (comets, astreroids, etc)

[General Ludd]

Originally posted by November Adam

Maybe we'll go back to sleep?

I hope so, we're getting a bit restless.



Is that a good book, by the way? I've been looking at it for a while, now.

[Frozzy]

I just saw a program on this today, and though I would add my two cents

1: The magnetic field does not "disappear" during a flip, it only becomes very weak (so radiation would still get in).

2: The magnetic field dies when the inner core of the earth becomes frozen. The Earth's core only decreases by 100C every billion years, so we are far far far away from it disappearing, so it is almost definately a flip in progress

3: Over the past 150 years, the "hole" in the South Atlantic has been growing bigger, increasing the possibility of a flip

4: The weakened field caused by the flip lasts for hundreds of years, increasing radiation getting through the weakend magnetic flip. Cancer rates will rise.

5: There is no "magnetic pole" in this time. In as much as a day the pole can move 60 degrees due to the flipping.

6: Samples of lava taken from Oregon prove this. When rock and clay cools, it is magnetised by the magnetic field. When the lava was removed, the last pieces of lava to be cooled had an east correlation as opposed to the predicted lava cooled a day earlier which had a sout south west correlation.

[Sirotnikov]

Originally posted by Ned
...
Does anyone here have a degree in astrophysics?

Why, did you lose yours?

Well you can't borrow mine!

[Nubclear]

Evil communist democrats

[Kramerman]

Originally posted by November Adam
Ha I'm reading a sci-fi book- Hominids, that mentions the flip and that the last time it happened was right around the time humans "awoke", and stopped being smart apes. It speculated that it was some 40,000 years ago.

Maybe we'll go back to sleep?

or maybe we would become superduper hominids!

[Kramerman]

btw, i htink the last magnetic field reversal was like 800,000 years ago, and they happen sparatically, but rarely more often than once every several million years. According to the article, scientists conservatively estimate that there have been about 200 polarity switches of the field in earths history... of 4 billion years.

I think the greater issue raised by the article tho is not the switching of the field, which isnt much to swaet, but the diminishment of the field by 10% over the last 150 some odd years. As far as the correltation with the last mini ice age, i doubt theres much, as what you refer to as the last mini-ice age wasnt much of a mini ice age as it was merely a prolonged streak of cold weather. during the middle ages tho there was an actual mini ice age

[Shogun Gunner]

Okay everyone...get your pieces of iron out and start banging them together. We need to make more magnets, more I tell you! Keep banging! If we don't build the magnetic strength on this planet we are all doomed!

[Japher]

My brother-in-law use to work for an industrial magnet company down in L.A., I'll ask him 'bout pole flipping and get back to you... I seem to remember the "all of a sudden" issue being a factor, though "all of a sudden" in the grand scheme of things could be a long time.