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How the geomagnetic field vector reverses polarity

Nature volume 316, pages 230–234 (1985)Cite this article

Abstract

A highly detailed record of both the direction and intensity of the Earth's magnetic field as it reverses has been obtained from a Miocene volcanic sequence. The transitional field is low in intensity and is typically non-axisymmetric. Geomagnetic impulses corresponding to astonishingly high rates of change of the field sometimes occur, suggesting that liquid velocity within the Earth's core increases during geomagnetic reversals.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Laboratoire de Géomagnétisme, CNRS and Université de Paris 6, 94107, Saint-Maur Cédex

    Michel Prévot

  2. Centre Géologique et Géophysique, CNRS and Université des Sciences et Techniques, 34060, Montpellier Cédex, France

    Michel Prévot

  3. US Geological Survey, Menlo Park, California, 94025, USA

    Edward A. Mankinen & C. Sherman Grommé

  4. Earth Sciences Board, University of California, Santa Cruz, California, 95064, USA

    Robert S. Coe

Authors
  1. Michel Prévot
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  2. Edward A. Mankinen
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  3. C. Sherman Grommé
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  4. Robert S. Coe
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Prévot, M., Mankinen, E., Grommé, C. et al. How the geomagnetic field vector reverses polarity. Nature 316, 230–234 (1985). https://doi.org/10.1038/316230a0

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