| Hands up if you knew the South magnetic pole is now at about 64°S 09:41 - Oct 8 with 2709 views | NthQldITFC |
I'm currently reading Ranulph Fiennes book about Scott, and although I knew the magnetic pole was quite a long way away from 90°S (72°S in 1903) I didn't realise that it was still drifting North, and is now actually outside the Antarctic Circle.
(The North magnetic pole is actually rapidly heading back to where it jolly well ought to be; 78°N in 1990 to 85°N now)
I don't know where I'm going with this, if you'll pardon the navigational pun. |  |
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| Hands up if you knew the South magnetic pole is now at about 64°S on 09:46 - Oct 8 with 2257 views | homer_123 |
Doesn't it flip entirely at some point? |  |
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| Hands up if you knew the South magnetic pole is now at about 64°S on 09:51 - Oct 8 with 2240 views | nodge_blue |
So if magnetic south has never been to exactly the bottom of the earth, how did Scott and the Norwegian fella manage to get to the South Pole. And does that mean they actually missed it and ended up in completely the wrong place? |  |
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| Hands up if you knew the South magnetic pole is now at about 64°S on 09:54 - Oct 8 with 2229 views | NthQldITFC |
| Hands up if you knew the South magnetic pole is now at about 64°S on 09:46 - Oct 8 by homer_123 |
Doesn't it flip entirely at some point? |
Yes, I think so. I read a book once (green, it were) about... ah no, I think it's in Bill Bryson's Short History Of Nearly Everything, about a US survey around the time of the second world war which detected matching bands of periodically flipping magnetic rock (igneous rock) from each side of the mid-Atlantic ridge. I think I've got that right.
So every time the poles flipped the magnetic orientation of the Earth was baked into the slowly exuding rock, either side of that massive crack! | |
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| Hands up if you knew the South magnetic pole is now at about 64°S on 09:55 - Oct 8 with 2214 views | cookra |
| Hands up if you knew the South magnetic pole is now at about 64°S on 09:46 - Oct 8 by homer_123 |
Doesn't it flip entirely at some point? |
impossible to flip when its flat! |  |
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| Hands up if you knew the South magnetic pole is now at about 64°S on 09:57 - Oct 8 with 2210 views | nodge_blue |
| Hands up if you knew the South magnetic pole is now at about 64°S on 09:54 - Oct 8 by NthQldITFC |
Yes, I think so. I read a book once (green, it were) about... ah no, I think it's in Bill Bryson's Short History Of Nearly Everything, about a US survey around the time of the second world war which detected matching bands of periodically flipping magnetic rock (igneous rock) from each side of the mid-Atlantic ridge. I think I've got that right.
So every time the poles flipped the magnetic orientation of the Earth was baked into the slowly exuding rock, either side of that massive crack! |
A brilliant book on science written by a travel writer - who would have guessed.
I liked the description of how vast our galaxy is and how many light years it would take to travel from one edge to the other. Then he compared our galaxy to the size of a tennis ball and said for every known galaxy you could fill the Albert Hall with them. | |
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| Hands up if you knew the South magnetic pole is now at about 64°S on 09:59 - Oct 8 with 2205 views | NthQldITFC |
| Hands up if you knew the South magnetic pole is now at about 64°S on 09:51 - Oct 8 by nodge_blue |
So if magnetic south has never been to exactly the bottom of the earth, how did Scott and the Norwegian fella manage to get to the South Pole. And does that mean they actually missed it and ended up in completely the wrong place? |
Well, they got to the Geographic South Pole (i.e. the south end of the axis on which the Earth rotates) but of course that wobbles and varies a bit as well, so it's all a bit nominal.
The Magnetic South Pole is a different kettle of fish, and is the point where a compass needle would point straight up and down, although if your kettle was made of iron it would somewhat fk up the observation, but at least you'd have some fish to eat, frozen though it may be.
Shackleton got to the Magnetic South Pole first I think in 1907 or so. | |
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| Hands up if you knew the South magnetic pole is now at about 64°S on 10:01 - Oct 8 with 2190 views | NthQldITFC |
| Hands up if you knew the South magnetic pole is now at about 64°S on 09:57 - Oct 8 by nodge_blue |
A brilliant book on science written by a travel writer - who would have guessed.
I liked the description of how vast our galaxy is and how many light years it would take to travel from one edge to the other. Then he compared our galaxy to the size of a tennis ball and said for every known galaxy you could fill the Albert Hall with them. |
Yeah, if I was only allowed one book, that would be it. Not only does he cover 'nearly everything' he does it in such an addictively readable way, and the personal bits about his interviews of various people for the book are excellent too. | |
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| Hands up if you knew the South magnetic pole is now at about 64°S on 10:02 - Oct 8 with 2184 views | NthQldITFC |
| Hands up if you knew the South magnetic pole is now at about 64°S on 09:55 - Oct 8 by cookra |
impossible to flip when its flat! |
Have you never flipped a beer mat or a coin dude? It's much easier than flipping a ball. | |
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| Hands up if you knew the South magnetic pole is now at about 64°S on 10:03 - Oct 8 with 2183 views | nodge_blue |
| Hands up if you knew the South magnetic pole is now at about 64°S on 09:59 - Oct 8 by NthQldITFC |
Well, they got to the Geographic South Pole (i.e. the south end of the axis on which the Earth rotates) but of course that wobbles and varies a bit as well, so it's all a bit nominal.
The Magnetic South Pole is a different kettle of fish, and is the point where a compass needle would point straight up and down, although if your kettle was made of iron it would somewhat fk up the observation, but at least you'd have some fish to eat, frozen though it may be.
Shackleton got to the Magnetic South Pole first I think in 1907 or so. |
But in those days, in uncharted land, how did they know where the geographic South Pole was. Surely they would have used a compass to travel South? | |
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| Hands up if you knew the South magnetic pole is now at about 64°S on 10:06 - Oct 8 with 2172 views | homer_123 |
| Hands up if you knew the South magnetic pole is now at about 64°S on 09:55 - Oct 8 by cookra |
impossible to flip when its flat! |
Even something flat as two sides! ;) | |
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| Hands up if you knew the South magnetic pole is now at about 64°S on 10:11 - Oct 8 with 2153 views | Help |
| Hands up if you knew the South magnetic pole is now at about 64°S on 09:55 - Oct 8 by cookra |
impossible to flip when its flat! |
You can flip a coin |  |
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| Hands up if you knew the South magnetic pole is now at about 64°S on 10:17 - Oct 8 with 2137 views | Keno |
| Hands up if you knew the South magnetic pole is now at about 64°S on 10:06 - Oct 8 by homer_123 |
Even something flat as two sides! ;) |
its where the idea for an artic roll came from |  |
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| Hands up if you knew the South magnetic pole is now at about 64°S on 10:17 - Oct 8 with 2139 views | Guthrum |
| Hands up if you knew the South magnetic pole is now at about 64°S on 10:03 - Oct 8 by nodge_blue |
But in those days, in uncharted land, how did they know where the geographic South Pole was. Surely they would have used a compass to travel South? |
Sextant sightings. So long as you know the date, that can tell your latitude very easily. When it reaches 90 degrees south, you're there.
The historical problem was always with longitude, for which you also need to accurately know the time at a fixed reference point on the planet. |  |
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| Hands up if you knew the South magnetic pole is now at about 64°S on 10:20 - Oct 8 with 2121 views | Guthrum |
| Hands up if you knew the South magnetic pole is now at about 64°S on 09:59 - Oct 8 by NthQldITFC |
Well, they got to the Geographic South Pole (i.e. the south end of the axis on which the Earth rotates) but of course that wobbles and varies a bit as well, so it's all a bit nominal.
The Magnetic South Pole is a different kettle of fish, and is the point where a compass needle would point straight up and down, although if your kettle was made of iron it would somewhat fk up the observation, but at least you'd have some fish to eat, frozen though it may be.
Shackleton got to the Magnetic South Pole first I think in 1907 or so. |
Actually (and notoriously) compasses stop working some way short of the magnetic poles. This caused problems with aircraft trying to fly the Great Circle route between northern Europe and America. | |
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| Hands up if you knew the South magnetic pole is now at about 64°S on 10:23 - Oct 8 with 2109 views | NthQldITFC |
| Hands up if you knew the South magnetic pole is now at about 64°S on 10:03 - Oct 8 by nodge_blue |
But in those days, in uncharted land, how did they know where the geographic South Pole was. Surely they would have used a compass to travel South? |
I don't know (yet) but I assume it would be on celestial observations.
Or on the (irrational) basis that it must be the coldest point, maybe a scientifically controlled measuring of willy length changes could be informative? (Oh gods, I'm starting to sound like that other nutcase) | |
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| Hands up if you knew the South magnetic pole is now at about 64°S on 10:26 - Oct 8 with 2091 views | NthQldITFC |
| Hands up if you knew the South magnetic pole is now at about 64°S on 10:20 - Oct 8 by Guthrum |
Actually (and notoriously) compasses stop working some way short of the magnetic poles. This caused problems with aircraft trying to fly the Great Circle route between northern Europe and America. |
I think they used a type of compass which pivoted up and down (a magneto-inclinometer to coin a phrase?) which was presumably attached to a 'spirit level' as a gravity-based reference. | |
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| Hands up if you knew the South magnetic pole is now at about 64°S on 10:27 - Oct 8 with 2084 views | Guthrum |
| Hands up if you knew the South magnetic pole is now at about 64°S on 10:23 - Oct 8 by NthQldITFC |
I don't know (yet) but I assume it would be on celestial observations.
Or on the (irrational) basis that it must be the coldest point, maybe a scientifically controlled measuring of willy length changes could be informative? (Oh gods, I'm starting to sound like that other nutcase) |
It's not the coldest point, either. That being in the centre of the land mass off to the east. | |
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| Hands up if you knew the South magnetic pole is now at about 64°S on 10:29 - Oct 8 with 2080 views | nodge_blue |
| Hands up if you knew the South magnetic pole is now at about 64°S on 10:17 - Oct 8 by Guthrum |
Sextant sightings. So long as you know the date, that can tell your latitude very easily. When it reaches 90 degrees south, you're there.
The historical problem was always with longitude, for which you also need to accurately know the time at a fixed reference point on the planet. |
I assumed it could only be that. Seems such an antiquated and I would have thought not entirely accurate way of pinpointing the exact South Pole. But given both Scott and the other guy arrived at the same spot, I guess it must work. | |
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| Hands up if you knew the South magnetic pole is now at about 64°S on 10:30 - Oct 8 with 2077 views | NthQldITFC |
| Hands up if you knew the South magnetic pole is now at about 64°S on 10:27 - Oct 8 by Guthrum |
It's not the coldest point, either. That being in the centre of the land mass off to the east. |
I know, that's why I said it was irrational - quite apart from being utterly stupid and downright risky to the family line  | |
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| Hands up if you knew the South magnetic pole is now at about 64°S on 10:30 - Oct 8 with 2077 views | Guthrum |
| Hands up if you knew the South magnetic pole is now at about 64°S on 10:26 - Oct 8 by NthQldITFC |
I think they used a type of compass which pivoted up and down (a magneto-inclinometer to coin a phrase?) which was presumably attached to a 'spirit level' as a gravity-based reference. |
It's more that the magnetic field is not "smooth" right up to the magnetic poles. The needle starts pointing in random directions. | |
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| Hands up if you knew the South magnetic pole is now at about 64°S on 10:39 - Oct 8 with 2048 views | Guthrum |
| Hands up if you knew the South magnetic pole is now at about 64°S on 10:29 - Oct 8 by nodge_blue |
I assumed it could only be that. Seems such an antiquated and I would have thought not entirely accurate way of pinpointing the exact South Pole. But given both Scott and the other guy arrived at the same spot, I guess it must work. |
A sextant can be very accurate, to well within a mile. Especially if used on solid land rather than a moving ship.
Not that antiquated, either. Right up to the development of satellite-based positioning systems in the late 1980s, it was still the most accurate long-range navigational method.
Both the SR-71 and various cruise missiles had automated star-tracking systems as part of their navigational packages. Used in the space programme, too. | |
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| Hands up if you knew the South magnetic pole is now at about 64°S on 10:59 - Oct 8 with 1984 views | WeWereZombies |
| Hands up if you knew the South magnetic pole is now at about 64°S on 09:59 - Oct 8 by NthQldITFC |
Well, they got to the Geographic South Pole (i.e. the south end of the axis on which the Earth rotates) but of course that wobbles and varies a bit as well, so it's all a bit nominal.
The Magnetic South Pole is a different kettle of fish, and is the point where a compass needle would point straight up and down, although if your kettle was made of iron it would somewhat fk up the observation, but at least you'd have some fish to eat, frozen though it may be.
Shackleton got to the Magnetic South Pole first I think in 1907 or so. |
I'm worried about the penguins now, if they are feeding from a different kettle of fish and the polarity flips will they stop being attracted to each other ? |  |
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| Hands up if you knew the South magnetic pole is now at about 64°S on 12:31 - Oct 8 with 1774 views | Keno |
| Hands up if you knew the South magnetic pole is now at about 64°S on 10:59 - Oct 8 by WeWereZombies |
I'm worried about the penguins now, if they are feeding from a different kettle of fish and the polarity flips will they stop being attracted to each other ? |
# pray for Pingu | |
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| Hands up if you knew the South magnetic pole is now at about 64°S on 13:17 - Oct 8 with 1705 views | IndependentlyBlue |
| Hands up if you knew the South magnetic pole is now at about 64°S on 09:57 - Oct 8 by nodge_blue |
A brilliant book on science written by a travel writer - who would have guessed.
I liked the description of how vast our galaxy is and how many light years it would take to travel from one edge to the other. Then he compared our galaxy to the size of a tennis ball and said for every known galaxy you could fill the Albert Hall with them. |
Light year isn’t a measure of time, it’s a measure of distance.
One light year is the distance light will travel in one earth year. Approximately 9 trillion kilometres, give or take |  |
| Better to stay silent and be thought a fool than open your mouth and remove all doubt |
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| Hands up if you knew the South magnetic pole is now at about 64°S on 13:20 - Oct 8 with 1693 views | Illinoisblue |
So THIS is why our defenders are getting pulled out of position so easily. |  |
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