The Earth's magnetic poles have shifted—GPS's new model promises even more precise positioning

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The magnetic north pole has recently changed its position, moving further from Canada toward Siberia. The change has resulted in the release of the updated World Magnetic Model (WMM). The model is very critical to the accuracy of modern navigation systems, including ships, aircraft, and GPS technology.

Every five years, the United States' National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and the British Geological Survey (BGS) collaborate to update this model. For the first time, the map of the magnetic poles has been created in high resolution, offering data that is ten times more precise than before.

The magnetic pole and the geographic pole are not identical. The Earth is rotating just like a top around its axis, and the two points at the ends of this axis of rotation are called geographic poles. On the other hand, the magnetic poles are defined by the magnetic field of the Earth. Due to the movement of molten iron and nickel inside the Earth, it becomes like one enormous magnet. Just like any magnet, the Earth has magnetic field lines, which are densest at two specific points. These points of maximum magnetic density are known as the magnetic poles.

The rotation of the Earth causes continuous changes in the flow and behavior of molten iron and nickel, and those changes, in turn, cause changes in the position of the magnetic poles over time.

Recently, the movement of the magnetic pole has become quite dramatic. William Brown, from the British Geological Survey’s Global Geomagnetic Field Model, commented on this phenomenon, saying,

We have never observed such peculiar behavior of the magnetic north pole before. Since the 1500s, it had been moving slowly around Canada. Over the past 20 years, it began shifting rapidly toward Siberia in Russia. In the last five years, its speed has decreased from 50 kilometers per year to 35 kilometers per year. This means the magnetic pole is currently moving toward Siberia at a rate of 35 kilometers annually. We have never witnessed anything like this before.


Knowing the exact position of the magnetic north pole is critical to navigation system accuracy. Scientists at the British Geological Survey said using old models can result in very large errors. For example, they said, if someone were to travel in a straight line from South Africa to the United Kingdom using an old model, they would end up 150 kilometers west of their destination. It's worth noting that the distance between South Africa and the UK is approximately 8,500 miles direct (or 12,875 kilometers).

This new magnetic model corrects those kinds of errors, and it will be efficient for the next five years. Logistic companies and all government agencies are to update their systems as necessary. However, such updates for general users will be automatic—for example, in people using phones or entire GPS systems.

The magnetic north pole was first pinpointed by Sir James Clark Ross in 1831. Since then, movement of the same has been continuously tracked by scientists. Earth's magnetic field is observed not only from the surface but also from space.

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