Magnetic declination refers to the angle difference between Earth’s magnetic north and geographic north and is one of the fundamental elements of navigation systems. Scientists announced that the movement of magnetic north, which has been continuing for years, has accelerated and caused significant changes in compass directions.
Recent research, Reveals that magnetic north is rapidly shifting from Canada to Siberia. This not only increases the risk of deviation in old compasses, but also makes the need for precision of modern direction systems even more important.
It moves northwards towards Siberia, with a movement of approximately 35 kilometers every year. This situation ranges from aircraft to submarines to ships. navigation devicesIt causes significant changes in direction determination systems, which have a wide range of use.
Historical Movement Accelerates: Risk of Deviation in Old Devices
In WWM’s 2025 update, North Magnetic PoleIt has been reported that the movement of the sea, which has been going on since the 16th century, has accelerated in the last five years and the sliding rate, which reached 50 kilometers per year, has decreased to 35 kilometers. The World Magnetic Model is renewed every five years, ensuring that the magnetic coordinates of our planet are determined accurately.
Scientists say that this change may cause deviations in the north direction in old-style compasses, but in modern technological devices (smartphones, computers and GPS systems) states that there will be no problems thanks to automatic updates. While this development shapes the future of navigation systems, it reveals that users of old devices should be more careful about magnetic deviations.
Magnetic Declination: Difference Between True North and Magnetic North
magnetic declination or variation refers to the difference in angle between geographic north (true north) and magnetic north in the horizontal plane. The north compass needle moves according to the direction of the Earth’s magnetic field lines and points to magnetic north. When there is no declination, point 0 of the compass indicates geographic north. However, this angle may vary depending on your location and time.
Famous sailor and mathematician Nathaniel Bowditchdefined magnetic declination as the angle between magnetic and geographic meridians at a point. This difference is usually expressed in degrees and minutes and indicates whether the deviation is east or west. If magnetic north is east of true north, the declination is considered positive, and if magnetic north is west, it is considered negative.
Characteristics of Magnetic Declination
On the Earth’s surface, lines where the magnetic declination has a constant value are called “isogonic” lines, while lines where the declination is zero are known as “agonic” lines. The commonly used symbol for this phenomenon is the lowercase Greek letter δ (delta).
Magnetic declination, from time to time “magnetic deviation” It can be confused with the term . However, deviation refers to an error caused by the compass being affected by metal objects such as aircraft or ships, and is different from magnetic declination. Likewise, magnetic declination and magnetic tendency are separate from each other. Magnetic bias is defined as the angle that the Earth’s magnetic field lines make with the horizontal plane.
These different concepts have an important role in understanding magnetic north and the Earth’s magnetic field and provide critical information, especially for navigation systems.
Why Do Earth’s Magnetic Poles Move?
Research on the Earth’s magnetic field reveals that this field has existed for at least three billion years. Based on evidence such as magnetized rocks and lava flow directions, it appears that the magnetic poles have shifted many times in the past, with these changes occurring on average every 300,000 years.
However, magnetic fieldHow it lasted for such a long time and how it formed exactly has not yet been fully resolved by scientists. According to current theories, flows of matter in the liquid outer core surrounding the Earth’s solid iron inner core play a fundamental role in the formation of this field. This process creates a dynamo effect, similar to the working principle of magnets.
Over time, as the Earth cools, the iron in the liquid alloy solidifies and is added to the inner core surface. This solidification leads to a change in the composition of the liquid alloy. In addition, the rotation of the Earth around its axis causes the liquid to move in a spiral and causes imbalances in the magnetic field.
Research shows that the relocation of magnetic poles is linked to instabilities caused by these fluid movements in the core. Although this process is continuous, it progresses very slowly and the change of the magnetic field occurs over millions of years.
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