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Feb-16-2011 12:41printcomments

Scientists: Magnetic Polar Reversal May Have Started

What's going to happen? The only thing we really know is that there is no way for humans to slow down or stop the process.

Changing Magnetics
Salem-News.com

(CHICAGO) - Concern has been mounting for almost a decade as scientists hunched over their instruments and double-checked new data concerning the status of the Earth's crucial magnetic field.

The magnetic field protects all life from damaging solar radiation. Exposure to such radiation can cause cancer and mutate DNA. Some researchers believe evolution has been driven in part by epochs marked by a failing or weak magnetic field that allowed the surface of the world to be bathed with intense ultra-violet and other deadly forms of life-changing radiation.

Tipping point

Now new evidence has emerged leading some scientists to believe that the magnetic pole shift—an ongoing phenomenon that has been happening for decades—has reached a tipping point.

According to a report issued by the prestigious British Geological Survey (BGS), evidence suggests the magnetic reversal has begun.

The BGS has taken this position based on careful analysis of a region of the Earth known as the South Atlantic Anomaly (SAA). It's an area where the magnetic field is in a state of flux and has weakened noticeably. The data shows the anomaly is growing rapidly and spreading west from South Africa.

All of this indicates the Earth's liquid core is changing.

"This may be early evidence of a forthcoming reversal in the direction of the Earth’s internal magnetic field," states the article on the BGS website.

The horrible truth

Why scientists and others are not eager to share is the fact that no one alive has a clue what will happen as the magnetic firld weakens and shifts and then flips.

There are educated guesses and best guesses. There are extrapolations and assumptions. And there are theories—lot's of them. They range from the shift causing minor inconveniences like recalibrating runways at airports like the facility in Tampa was recently forced to do, to Doomsday scenarios where the entire field disappears exposing all life—including human life—to blistering, deadly radiation and the ghastly mutations that follow.

Some geophysicists believe that the process of magnetic pole shift takes hundreds or thousands of years. Yet others point to an 11,500 year cycle and evidence of a correlation between leaps in evolution (they argue driven by radiation exposure).

Data points

Woolly mammoths went extinct when the Gothenburg magnetic reversal occurred some 11,500 years ago.

The Earth collapsed into a catastrophic Ice Age when the Mono Lake magnetic reversal took place 23,000 years ago.

33,500 years ago the Lake Mungo magnetic reversal happened. The Neanderthals disappeared.

A truly frightening event that happened during the Big Lost magnetic reversal of 640,000 BC was the massive eruption of the Yellowstone supervolcano. The explosion destroyed more than one-third of the land area of what's now the United States.

Today geophysicists and vulcanologist are growing increasing concerned about Yellowstone. It's showing signs of erupting again. And of course, we have a magnetic reversal taking place.

A complete unknown

What's going to happen? The BGS doesn't know. No one really knows. And there's no way for humans to slow down or stop the process.

"The Earth’s magnetic field, generated deep within the planet, is a shield against particle radiation from space," BGS states. "In the South Atlantic this shield is..."

To catch the rest of this article, please visit: helium.com

___________________________

Terrence Aym is a Salem-News.com Contributor based in Chicago, who is well known nationally for his stirring reports on the top ranked site, helium.com. Born in Minnesota, Terrence Aym grew up in the Chicagoland suburbs. Having traveled to 40 of the 50 states and lived in 7 of them, Aym is no stranger to travel. He's also spent time in Canada, Mexico, the Caribbean, Europe, Asia and Western Africa. An executive for many years with Wall Street broker-dealer firms, Aym has also had a life-long interest in science, technology, the arts, philosophy and history. If it's still possible to be a 'Renaissance man' in the 21st Century, Aym is working hard to be one.

Aym has several book projects in the works. Media sites that have recently featured Aym, and/or discussed his articles, include ABC News, TIME Magazine, Business Insider, Crunchgear.com, Discover, Dvice, Benzinga and more recently, his work has been showing up in South Africa and Russia.




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Richard February 26, 2011 8:23 pm (Pacific time)

After reading your article,thought I would submit this link for your perusal. Cause of the earth's magnetic field solved.....it is not in the core of the earth http://www.science27.com/Earth/index.htm

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