Degradation of Earth's Magnetic Field Accelerating

[petro]

Yeah, but our food, wasn't. No food, no life.

Meh, critters can live through anything.

Not over a period of 1000 years. If there were a 1000 year period with no magnetic field most life would be gone.

The field may weaken but doesn't disappear lest we become like Mars.
Many shifts in the planets past, but no evidence of a complete field loss.
Pole Reversal Happens All The (Geologic) Time

 

[deannalw]

The weakening has gone fro 5% per century to 5% per DECADE. We dont have firm evidence to make a prediction since we have not recorded such an event before, but it seems that the Earths magnetic field could reverse in the near future. This could involve a period in which we have no magnetic field at all.

There is little need for our generation to panic, but it might be a good time to prepare for the eventual lack of a magnetic field.

The Weakening Of Earth's Magnetic Field Has Greatly Accelerated

I don't care. I'll just go to Hobby Lobby and buy some more magnets.

 

[petro]

The weakening has gone fro 5% per century to 5% per DECADE. We dont have firm evidence to make a prediction since we have not recorded such an event before, but it seems that the Earths magnetic field could reverse in the near future. This could involve a period in which we have no magnetic field at all.

There is little need for our generation to panic, but it might be a good time to prepare for the eventual lack of a magnetic field.

The Weakening Of Earth's Magnetic Field Has Greatly Accelerated

I don't care. I'll just go to Hobby Lobby and buy some.

New stylish magnetic hat.
Protect yourself from harmful solar radiation with your very own magnetic field. Kits available at Hobby Lobby.

 

[Likkmee]

I'll be cheering " White men CAN jump ! "

 

[whitehall]

Is that good news or bad news to the left?

 

[JimBowie1958]

Is that good news or bad news to the left?

EVERYTHING is bad news for the left these days

 

[Soupnazi630]

It will merely flip just like it has many times before. Be kind of cool to watch the compass needles flip!

Well hopefully it will flip quickly, but no one knows how long that process will take while there is little if any magnetic field.

It is a safe assumption that the change is near instantaneous.

That does not seem to be a safe assumption at all. Many different methods exist of looking at this phenomenon and how it happened in the past.

Just one example is iron deposits in ancient lava flows which have long since hardened. In most cases they are oriented North and South. In others they are oriented in different directions or even none at all.

It seems that the reversal of the magnetic field may take place over years or even decades and not simply be a flip of the poles. The poles could disappear and reappear in different places or even multiple places.

Over this time it could well cause massive upheavel in nature. As in birds and other animals not being able to sense where to migrate to.

No one knows because as the op says we have never recorded it . But some limited evidence suggests it is not just a brief minor thing.

 

[Soupnazi630]

It is a safe assumption that the change is near instantaneous.

But nonetheless still only an assumption.

But one based on the fact that we are still here. With no magnetic field to protect us, the cosmic radiation would end most life.

Hasn't happened before, so won't happen now.

Not all extinction level events of the past are fully understood. This could have been a contributing cause for some of those events

No extinction level event has been total and even a temporary weakening of the magnetic field could cause massive problems without total extinction of like.

 

[Eric Arthur Blair]

It is a safe assumption that the change is near instantaneous.

Why is that a safe assumption? It sounds like a wishful hope to me if there is no science to back up the claim.

 

[Eric Arthur Blair]

But one based on the fact that we are still here. With no magnetic field to protect us, the cosmic radiation would end most life.

Hasn't happened before, so won't happen now.

But if such a thing happened in say, the Ordovecian period, how would we know the effects of it today?

 

[dblack]

It's Congress doing anything about this!??!

 

[petro]

It will merely flip just like it has many times before. Be kind of cool to watch the compass needles flip!

Well hopefully it will flip quickly, but no one knows how long that process will take while there is little if any magnetic field.

It is a safe assumption that the change is near instantaneous.

That does not seem to be a safe assumption at all. Many different methods exist of looking at this phenomenon and how it happened in the past.

Just one example is iron deposits in ancient lava flows which have long since hardened. In most cases they are oriented North and South. In others they are oriented in different directions or even none at all.

It seems that the reversal of the magnetic field may take place over years or even decades and not simply be a flip of the poles. The poles could disappear and reappear in different places or even multiple places.

Over this time it could well cause massive upheavel in nature. As in birds and other animals not being able to sense where to migrate to.

No one knows because as the op says we have never recorded it . But some limited evidence suggests it is not just a brief minor thing.

The process taking decades or longer would have less effect on migrating patterns in my view.
While migrating wildlife may sense the fields, they are also using other cues as direction of sun angle, wind patterns, seasonal changes, landmarks, genetic memory, etc.
For each succeeding generation the adjustment to a minor polar shift would be minimal.
We will simply adjust our GPS systems and adapt ourselves much the same way.