Magnetic North Pole Shift: Official Movement Confirmed
It’s Time to Recalibrate: Magnetic North Pole Continues Its Shift Towards Siberia
The magnetic North Pole is officially on the move again, prompting recalibration of navigation systems for ships and airplanes. Its ongoing shift away from Canada toward Siberia has been confirmed by the latest updates to the World Magnetic Model (WMM), developed every five years by experts from the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and the British Geological Survey (BGS).
Unlike the fixed geographical North Pole at Earth’s rotational axis, the magnetic North Pole represents where Earth’s magnetic field points vertically downward. Its movement is driven by the shifting iron and nickel inside the planet, causing the magnetic field—and thus the poles—to drift.
William Brown, a global geomagnetic field modeler at BGS, highlights the unprecedented behavior of the magnetic North Pole in recent decades:
“Magnetic north has been moving slowly around Canada since the 1500s, but in the past 20 years, it accelerated toward Siberia, reaching speeds of up to 50 kilometers [31 miles] per year. Five years ago, it suddenly decelerated to 35 kilometers [22 miles] per year, marking the greatest slowdown we’ve ever observed.”
The movement appears influenced by two massive magnetic lobes beneath Canada and Siberia. The shifts can sometimes be so pronounced that emergency updates to the WMM are required outside the usual five-year cycle.
This year’s WMM update includes the most detailed magnetic map ever created, with a spatial resolution of 300 kilometers at the equator—10 times higher than the previous model. For example, navigating a straight route of 8,500 kilometers (5,282 miles) from South Africa to the UK using the old WMM would result in an error of about 150 kilometers (93 miles).
These updates are essential for global navigation systems. Airlines, militaries, and logistics companies will implement the revised model across their fleets and equipment. “Major airlines and NATO militaries will upgrade complex navigation systems to integrate the new model,” Brown explained to CNN.
Fortunately, for everyday users of smartphones and GPS systems, updates are handled automatically.
The magnetic North Pole was first discovered by Sir James Clark Ross in 1831 in northern Canada. Since then, researchers have refined its tracking using ground-based measurements and satellite data, providing ever-greater accuracy as Earth’s magnetic field continues its slow but unpredictable evolution.
