Magnetic north shifting by 30 miles a year, might signal pole reversal

The magnetic pole is moving faster than at any time in human history.

Bryan Nelson

Magnetic north in the Arctic Circle is shifting so quickly now that it’s affecting navigation. (Photo: nenets/Shutterstock)

Whenever you hold a compass, the needle points to magnetic north near the North Pole. For centuries, magnetic north has led navigators and explorers around the world.

But the magnetic north pole is currently shifting at a faster rate than at any time in human history.

“It’s moving at about 50 km (30 miles) a year. It didn’t move much between 1900 and 1980 but it’s really accelerated in the past 40 years,” Ciaran Beggan, of the British Geological Survey in Edinburgh, told Reuters….