Compass measurements held a key to unlocking the mystery of Earth’s magnetic field and its changes over time. A historian-turned-geoscientist found the measurements in an unlikely place—merchant ship logs.
magnetic fields & magnetism
Posted inEditors' Highlights
New Spherical Cap Field Model for Europe and Direct Environs
New data on ancient burnt structures is integrated into a superior spherical cap field model for Europe.
Posted inEditors' Highlights
Marine Isotope Stage 6: First High-Resolution Field Record
A 200-year resolution record from the Black Sea for marine isotope stage 6 (130-180 ka) shows a stable geomagnetic field.
Posted inEditors' Highlights
Saturn’s Dynamo Illuminates its Interior
Saturn’s oddly symmetrical magnetic field can be explained by models in which the active dynamo region is overlain by a thick, stable layer cooled more strongly at the poles.
Posted inResearch Spotlights
Upward Lightning Takes Its Cue from Nearby Lightning Events
Lightning in a thunderstorm changes the electromagnetic field in a way that sparks upward lightning from tall structures.
Posted inEditors' Highlights
Probing the Age of the Oldest Ocean Crust in the Pacific
A new study extends the calibration of the Mesozoic Sequence down to the Mid Jurassic with multiscale marine magnetic anomaly data, demonstrating extraordinarily high reversal frequency.
Posted inScience Updates
Modernizing a Global Magnetic Partnership
For 30 years, INTERMAGNET, a worldwide network of ground-based observatories, has aided advances in navigation, precision drilling for oil and gas, and mitigating space weather impact on technology.
Posted inNews
Red Rocks: Using Color to Understand Climate Change
A recent study on hematite formation during the Triassic may help predict the effects of climate change on contemporary monsoonal environments.
Posted inNews
How Geodynamo Models Churn the Outer Core
New simulations of Earth’s outer core have reproduced magnetic fields that—for the first time—match paleomagnetic data collected from rocks.