The South Magnetic Pole is the wandering point on the Earth's Southern Hemisphere where the geomagnetic field lines are directed vertically upwards. It should not be confused with the lesser known South Geomagnetic Pole described later.
For historical reasons, the "end" of a magnet that points (roughly) north is itself called the "north pole" of the magnet, and the other end, pointing south, is called magnet's "south pole". Because opposite poles attract, the Earth's South Magnetic Pole is physically actually a magnetic north pole (see also North Magnetic Pole – Polarity).
The South Magnetic Pole is constantly shifting due to changes in the Earth's magnetic field. As of 2005 it was calculated to lie at 64°31′48″S 137°51′36″E / 64.53000°S 137.86000°E / -64.53000; 137.86000, just off the coast of Adelie Land, French Antarctica. That point lies outside the Antarctic Circle. Due to polar drift, the pole is moving north west by about 10 to 15 kilometers per year.
| North Magnetic Pole | (2001) 81°18′N 110°48′W / 81.3°N 110.8°W / 81.3; -110.8 | (2004 est) 82°18′N 113°24′W / 82.3°N 113.4°W / 82.3; -113.4 | (2005 est) 82°42′N 114°24′W / 82.7°N 114.4°W / 82.7; -114.4 |
| South Magnetic Pole | (1998) 64°36′S 138°30′E / 64.6°S 138.5°E / -64.6; 138.5 | (2004 est) 63°30′S 138°00′E / 63.5°S 138.0°E / -63.5; 138.0 | (2007) 64°29′49″S 137°41′02″E / 64.497°S 137.684°E / -64.497; 137.684 |
Read more about South Magnetic Pole: Expeditions, Fits To Global Data Sets, South Geomagnetic Pole, See Also
Famous quotes containing the words south, magnetic and/or pole:
“The Great South Beach of Long Island,... though wild and desolate, as it wants the bold bank,... possesses but half the grandeur of Cape Cod in my eyes, nor is the imagination contented with its southern aspect.”
—Henry David Thoreau (1817–1862)
“We are in great haste to construct a magnetic telegraph from Maine to Texas; but Maine and Texas, it may be, have nothing important to communicate.”
—Henry David Thoreau (1817–1862)
“Not because Socrates has said it, but because it is really in my nature, and perhaps a little more than it should be, I look upon all humans as my fellow-citizens, and would embrace a Pole as I would a Frenchman, subordinating this national tie to the common and universal one.”
—Michel de Montaigne (1533–1592)