- Earth’s magnetic poles are in constant motion, but they haven’t drifted far enough to actually turn around in modern times.
- Researchers know that the poles of the Earth have turned in the past, but opinions are divided about the effects of such an event on the planet and its inhabitants.
- Now, new research suggests that a magnetic polar flip about 42,000 years ago brought some dramatic changes and may have changed the course of human history.
Disaster films have shown us what Hollywood thinks could happen if the Earth’s poles were to suddenly turn, but the reality of the situation would likely be very different. We’re not sure how daily life would be affected if our planet’s magnetic poles were suddenly shaky, but scientists are constantly looking for evidence of past polar movements to get a better idea of what to expect .
A new study published in Science offers us some useful information thanks to an extremely old tree. The tree, still growing when the most recent magnetic polar turn occurred some 42,000 years ago, indicates dramatic and potentially catastrophic changes that took place in the atmosphere and on our planet’s surface.
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Like NPR reports, the scientists were able to use a tree long dead but well preserved to better understand a vast chunk of Earth’s history. By studying the tree’s rings, the scientists got a detailed record of about 1,700 years. This tree happened to be alive during the most recent magnetic polar turn, and analysis of the rings suggests it was a challenging time for everything living on Earth.
The team was specifically looking for a carbon signature in the tree’s rings. The type of carbon the scientists were looking for is created when cosmic rays can hit Earth’s atmosphere. When Earth’s magnetic field is strong, as it is today, the amount of carbon generated by this interaction is relatively low, but it peaks when the magnetic field weakens and allows more cosmic rays to pass through.
The researchers were able to find a wealth of this particular type of carbon in the rings of the tree that would have been produced during the polar flip, suggesting that such an event is directly related to a dramatic change in the strength of the tree. magnetic field of the earth.
“This record reveals a substantial increase in the carbon-14 content of the atmosphere, culminating in the period of declining magnetic field strength prior to the polarity switch,” Science explains. “The authors modeled the consequences of this event and concluded that the Earth’s minimum magnetic fields caused significant changes in atmospheric ozone concentration that caused synchronous global climate and environmental changes.”
The researchers believe this event would have flooded Earth with ultraviolet radiation as a result of the weakened magnetic field and the damage to the ozone layer that would have followed. In fact, it may have caused the extinction of many species. We still don’t have a way of knowing when and why the magnetic poles flip, but if it happens again, we could have a hard time.
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Mike Wehner has spent the last decade reporting on technology and video games, covering the latest news and trends in VR, wearables, smartphones and future technology. Most recently, Mike worked as a Tech Editor at The Daily Dot and has appeared on USA Today, Time.com, and numerous other web and print stores. His love of reporting comes second to his gaming addiction.