Earth’s Magnetic Field Weakening, Satellites and Spacecrafts Malfunction

• Earth’s magnetic field is weakening between Africa and South America.
• Scientists studying the phenomenon observed that an area known as the South Atlantic Anomaly.
• It has grown considerably in recent years, though the reason remains unclear.
• The anomaly dropped in strength by more than 8 percent between 1970 and 2020.
• It is a sign that the Earth’s magnetic field is about to reverse.
• Whereby the North Pole and the South Pole switch places and took place 780,000 years ago.
• It is already causing issues with satellites orbiting Earth.

According to an article published in The Independent UK and authored by Anthony Cuthbertson, the Earth’s magnetic field is weakening between Africa and South America, causing issues for satellites and spacecraft.

South Atlantic Anomaly

Scientists studying the phenomenon observed that an area known as the South Atlantic Anomaly has grown considerably in recent years, though the reason for it is not entirely clear.

Using data gathered by the European Space Agency’s (ESA) Swarm constellation of satellites, researchers noted that the area of the anomaly dropped in strength by more than 8 percent between 1970 and 2020.

“The new, eastern minimum of the South Atlantic Anomaly has appeared over the last decade and in recent years is developing vigorously,“ said Jürgen Matzka, from the German Research Centre for Geosciences. “We are very lucky to have the Swarm satellites in orbit to investigate the development of the South Atlantic Anomaly. The challenge now is to understand the processes in Earth’s core driving these changes.“

Are we heading for pole reversal?

One possibility, according to the ESA, is that the weakening field is a sign that the Earth’s magnetic field is about to reverse, whereby the North Pole and the South Pole switch places.

The last time a “geomagnetic reversal“ took place was 780,000 years ago, with some scientists claiming that the next one is long overdue. Typically, such events take place every 250,000 years.

The repercussions of such an event could be significant, as the Earth’s magnetic field plays an important role in protecting the planet from solar winds and harmful cosmic radiation.

Telecommunication and satellites to be hit

Telecommunication and satellite systems also rely on it to operate, suggesting that computers and mobile phones could experience difficulties.

The South Atlantic Anomaly is already causing issues with satellites orbiting Earth, the ESA warned, while spacecraft flying in the area could also experience “technical malfunctions“.

A 2018 study published in the scientific journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences found that despite the weakening field, “Earth’s magnetic field is probably not reversing“.

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Source: IndependentUK

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