Evidence of a coming pole shift has researchers speculating about the possible effects of such an event. It appears that a shift of the earth's
polarity began about 150 years ago. According to William J. Broad, writing for the New York Times (
www.nytimes.com...), its strength has weakened about 15 percent and its
decline has recently accelerated. So far the main effect has been to damage some satellites.
Scientists performing computer simulations of such a reversal believe that there will be severe repurcussions but it will not be a doomsday scenario.
There would be damage to power grids. It would send polar auroras flashing to the equator. Birds, fish, and migratory animals that use the earth's
magnetic field for their navigation would go astray. Perhaps most crucial, it would widen atmospheric ozone holes, because as the field weakens to
near zero just before the shift, that extreme weakness would allow solar winds containing extremely dangerous radioactive material to sweep the earth
and also expose us to harmful ultraviolet radiation.
The European Space Agency recently sent up a set of satellites called 'Swarm' to monitor the collapsing field more precicely than has been possible
so far. No one expects the shift to occur for hundreds of years...
Magnetic Pole Shift -
www.halexandria.org...
Swarm -
www.esa.int... 
