12-12-2003, 06:27 AM
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#51 (permalink)
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Crazy
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More -
Quote:
Earth's Magnetic Field Weakens 10 Percent
Thu Dec 11,11:12 PM ET
By ANDREW BRIDGES, AP Science Writer
SAN FRANCISCO - The strength of the Earth's magnetic field has decreased 10 percent over the past 150 years, raising the remote possibility that it may collapse and later reverse, flipping the planet's poles for the first time in nearly a million years, scientists said Thursday...
...the weakening, measured since 1845, could represent little more than an "excursion," or lull, which can last for hundreds of years, said John Tarduno of the University of Rochester.
Such a lull could still have significant effects, especially in regions where the weakening is most pronounced.
Over the southern Atlantic Ocean, a continued weakening of the magnetic field has diminished the shielding effect it has locally in protecting the Earth from the natural radiation that bombards our planet from space, scientists said...
The weakening — if coupled with a subsequently large influx of radiation in the form of protons streaming from the sun — can also affect the chemistry of the atmosphere, said Charles Jackman of NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center.
That can lead to significant but temporary losses of atmospheric ozone, he said.
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The article does not mention whether or not the magnetic weakening is being caused by SUVs.
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Skwerl. Its wuts fer dinner.
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