No one will notice it, and of course neither the compasses nor the GPS will go crazy, but in the next few days an unusual event will occur: for the first time in nearly 360 years, the magnetic north pole and the geographic north pole will coincide at the same point in Greenwich.
This is a curious event since, for the first time in its history, the compasses of the Royal Observatory of Greenwich (United Kingdom) will point to the geographic north pole, also called “true”, since its position remains unchanged. And, the last time that both poles met there was around the year 1660 , and the Observatory was not built until sixteen years later.
The declension zero or ‘agon’
As the magnetic pole does not remain static due to fluctuations in the magnetic field, an angle called magnetic declination is established between both poles, which varies depending on which point on the planet it is measured from, and which scientists have well controlled, since knowing it is essential that global navigation and mapping systems are working properly.
Currently, the magnetic north pole moves in a west-east direction at a speed of approximately 20 kilometers each year. Until now, the spiers of the Greenwich Observatory had always shown a negative decline: that is, they pointed further west than the geographic pole. Well, in a few days, the poles will meet, the needles will mark for a few seconds the declination of zero degrees (also called agon) and, later, as the north pole continues moving towards the east, the declination will begin to Be positive.
“At some point during the month of September, we will find ourselves in zero declination in Greenwich, and it will be the first time that the geographic and geomagnetic coordinates coincide here since the creation of the Observatory, ” explained Ciaran Beggan, scientist at the British Center for Geographical Studies. , in a press release. “The agon will continue to pass through the UK for the next 15-20 years and by 2040 all compasses are probably already pointing east of the true north pole.”
The movements of the magnetic field are quite erratic, and it is difficult to predict exactly when this curious phenomenon will occur. “Currently, it is impossible to predict how the magnetic field will change over the next few decades,” says the scientist.
Although it is obvious, the researcher has also recalled that ‘the compasses and the GPS will work as usual; there is no need for anyone to worry about any upheaval in daily life ‘, and no apocalypse is going to come when the two poles coincide at the zero meridian.
And in Spain?
As we have already mentioned, the declination is different depending on where on the planet it is measured. In Spain, for example, the province of Alicante went into zero decline in 2016, a phenomenon that was celebrated with various informative activities organized from the University of Alicante. According to Enrique Aparicio, a researcher at said university, in a press release, the coincidence of the two norths in Madrid will take place approximately in the year 2025.
