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Mioara Mandea
The Magnetic Declination

A History of the Compass
Mioara Mandea
Centre National d’Études Spatiales
Paris, France
ISSN 2191-5369 ISSN 2191-5377 (electronic)

ISBN 978-3-031-09475-0 ISBN 978-3-031-09476-7 (eBook)
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-09476-7
© The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2022

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For YOU and my wonderful readers!
This book could be an inspiration to anyone,
but especially to Elise, Rachel, Ténael,
Tristan, Matéï...
Preface
The Earth’s magnetic field is used for probing the Earth’s lithosphere and deep inte-
rior, and understanding solar-terrestrial relationships; it is also a tool for navigation,
directional drilling, geological studies and mineral exploration. Also known as the
“geomagnetic field”, it shields our habitat from the direct influences of the solar wind.
During strong geomagnetic storms, that magnetic shield is pushed Earth-ward under
the influence of the high-speed solar wind. Satellite failures, problems in telecommu-
nication and radio transmission or even regional power outages are often identified
as consequences of these events. To map the geomagnetic field and both its spatial
and temporal variations, it is essential not only to improve our understanding of the
different processes producing it but also to increase the predictability of the field
evolution. Data from ground observatories, special surveys over land and sea, and
more recently from satellites must be jointly used to achieve these goals. But it is
also important to go back in time... and this journey is offered here, via the magnetic
declination.
From the outset, we need to underline that the book mainly focuses on magnetic
declination, as one of the magnetic field components. Magnetic declination is defined
as the angle between the magnetic north and the true north, being positive when the
angle measured is east of true north and negative when west. In what follows, the
term declination is also used; however, it must not be confused with the same term
employed in astronomy and defined as the angular distance to locate a point on
the celestial sphere in the equatorial coordinate system. Let’s also note that, in the
field of navigation, the difference between the true north and magnetic north is called
variation, a characteristic common to all vessels—at a given position and given time.
Deviation is a magnetic property unique to the vessel itself, describing the effect of
different magnetic fields created by the vessel’s own equipment such as batteries,
large iron-rich objects, engine, speakers, VHF radios, etc.
The origin of this book is somehow linked to my French career which started at the

French National Magnetic Observatory, Chambon-la-Fort . Prior to the establishment

of observatories and elaboration of an absolute method to measure the magnetic
field intensity by Gauss in the 1830s, magnetic observations were made, amongst
others, by mariners engaged in merchant and naval shipping. These measurements
vii
viii Preface
are mainly magnetic declination measurements and they extend the global history
back to the beginning of the sixteenth century. To discover and analyse ancient
magnetic measurements has been a part of my work. Ancient books and maps, old
French Navy measurements and instruments have provided me with a unique way to
gather magnetic field measurements in Western Europe, over the last centuries, with
a sustained work on declination and inclination series for Paris, London, Munich and
Bucharest.
Thus, the book aims to describe in a comprehensible way the efforts made over
centuries in measuring and understanding the magnetic declination. The book also
highlights some important characteristics of the Earth’s magnetic field determined
thanks to the declination measurements. Some applications and societal implications
are also underlined. The book is structured as follows.
The short Part I provides introductory information about the geomagnetic field,
mainly with respect to its definitions and sources. Part II is dedicated to the beginning
of magnetism, as illustrated in poetry and philosophical writings. The relevance of
different attempts to measure this magnetic field component, at different times and
locations, is underlined. Part III focuses on the magnetic declination—from the age
of sail to the first modern observations. This part offers a tour across centuries,
featuring the first maps which include magnetic information. The next important
period for understanding the magnetic declination covers the time span from the first
continuous observations to the satellite era, and this is addressed in Part IV. The
magnetic declination is closely linked to some specific phenomena. To understand
them, a selection of maps over the last century is presented in Part V. This is followed
by some consideration on spatial and temporal variations of the declination, such as
the westward drift and geomagnetic jerks. A special chapter of this Part focuses on
geomagnetic and magnetic poles. The book concludes with some thoughts about the
magnetic declination of the spacecraft era.
This book would not have been possible without the doors open to the history
of science by many of my colleagues, in France, Germany, Great Britan, Romania,
so, to some extent, this book is a true community product. Even though I have not
mentioned them individually, I extend my warm thanks to each of them.
I am also immensely grateful to institutions which have allowed me to allocate
time for searching ancient books, catalogues and maps in many European libraries.
I want to acknowledge those who have made my professional life such a plea-
sure: Benoit Langlais, Monika Korte, Vincent Lesur, Niels Olsen, Erwan Thébault,
Georgios Balasis, Aude Chambodut, Mathias Holschneider, Jean-Louis Le Mouël,
Maria Alexandra Pais, Nicolas Gillet, Giuliana Verbanac, Michel Diament, Ingo
Wardinski, Dominique Jault, Mike Purucker, Anca Isac, Susan MacMillan, Isabelle
Panet, Martin Rother, to name a few.
Petra van Steenbergen and Margaret Deignan were kind enough to invite me to
consider publishing this book with Springer. Toby Clark deserves special words of
appreciation as he brought a sense of required proportion to all our conversations
and read early drafts. I would like to express my special appreciation and thanks to
Elena Voj for her diligent reading of this book and her increasing interest in Earth’s
Preface ix
magnetism! Finally, I am deeply indebted to Ram Prasad Chandrasekar and Satish

Ambikanithi for their wonderful editorial support and guidance.
Last but not least, I want to thank my friends and my family for tolerating my
timeless retreats in my home office. I would like to thank my daughters, Anamaria
and Raluca, for their presence throughout my life, without whom I would not be who
I am. Finally, I must express my very profound gratitude to Daniel, my husband, for
providing me with unfailing support and continuous encouragement. Thank you.
Paris, France Mioara Mandea

May 2022
Contents
Part I Introduction
1 Some Introductory Notions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
1.1 Back in Time . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
1.2 Geomagnetic Field Components . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
1.3 Geomagnetic Field Sources . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
1.4 Geomagnetism, Archaeomagnetism and Palaeomagnetism . . . . . 9
References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
Part II The Beginning of Magnetism

2 The Poetry and Philosophy of the Beginnings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
2.1 From Floating Ideas to Floating Needles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
2.1.1 Mesopotamia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
2.1.2 Mesoamerica . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
2.1.3 China . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
2.1.4 Greece . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
2.2 The Greatest of Centuries . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
3 The First Attempts to Observe the Magnetic Declination . . . . . . . . . . 27
3.1 Empirical Theories . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
3.2 The First Observations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
3.2.1 Magnetic Declination . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
3.2.2 Magnetic Dip . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
3.3 Spatial and Temporal Variations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
3.3.1 Spatial Variations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
3.3.2 Temporal Variations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35
3.4 Early Ideas About the Sources . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38
xi
xii Contents
Part III Magnetic Declination–From the Age of Sail to the First

Modern Observations
4 Ancient Declination Maps . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43
4.1 The First Maps Including Magnetic Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43
4.1.1 Erhard Etzlaub – 1492 Map . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43
4.1.2 Jean Guérard – 1631 Map . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44
4.2 From Declination Measurements to Magnetic Elements . . . . . . . . 44
4.2.1 Cabot Map – 1544 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46
4.2.2 Gerardus Mercator – 1569 Map . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48
4.3 From One to Two Magnetic Poles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50
4.3.1 Guillaume Le Nautonier – 1603 Map . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50
4.4 The Earliest Magnetic Charts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50
4.4.1 Edmond Halley – 1700 Map . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50
4.4.2 Charts and Atlases Before the Vector Field
Measurements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54
References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59
Part IV Magnetic Declination from the First Continuous

Observations to the Satellite Era
5 Long-Series of Declination Observations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63
5.1 London Series . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65
5.2 Paris Series . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66
5.3 Munich Series . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 68
References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70
6 Geomagnetic Vector Field: From Ground to Satellite
Measurements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71
6.1 The First Geomagnetic Observatories . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71
6.2 Geomagnetic Observatories: From Analog to Digital Era . . . . . . . 75
6.2.1 Absolute Instruments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 76
6.2.2 Variometers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77
6.2.3 Automatic Observatories . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78
6.3 Space Measurements: Magnetic Satellites . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 80
References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 82
Part V Some Specific Features of the Magnetic Declination

7 Maps of Magnetic Declination Over the Last Centuries . . . . . . . . . . . 85
References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 89
8 Spatial Evolution: Westward Drift . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 91
References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 95
9 Temporal Evolution: Geomagnetic Jerks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 97
References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102
Contents xiii
10 Geomagnetic and Magnetic Poles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103

10.1 The Geomagnetic Poles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 104
10.2 The Magnetic Poles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 104
10.2.1 The North Magnetic Pole . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 104
10.2.2 The South Magnetic Pole . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 108
References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 111
11 What Next? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 113
11.1 Magnetic Declination at the Space Era . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 113
11.2 Magnetic Fields Beyond the Earth . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 115
References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 116
Part I
Introduction
Chapter 1
Some Introductory Notions
The geomagnetic field is generated deep inside our Planet, and it surrounds our planet
widely in the form of the magnetosphere reaching far into space. It plays a key role
in the whole Earth’s system by shielding the surface environment from a wind of
charged particles emanating from the Sun. To understand why the field changes, we
need to look deep beneath our feet, at some 3,000 km, to Earth’s iron core. It is in
the core that the Earth’s magnetic field is produced by an ocean of liquid iron alloy
that is powered into turbulent motion by heat loss to the overlying mantle. So, the
geomagnetic field signatures and their changes in space and time provide important
information about the Earth’s deep interior dynamics, the lithosphere structures and
tectonics, and finally the state of Sun-Earth interactions and space weather conditions.
From the beginning, it is crucial to understand how our Planet works, but also how
the different concepts and ideas have evolved in time. For this reason, a journey in
time and space is proposed.
This short introduction shows the wide range and complexity of the geomag-
netism. It begins with some historical notes and a general overview of the geomag-
netic field, and a brief description of the geomagnetic field sources, as well as of
the way materials and rocks carrying a magnetic record may help in assessing and
untangling Earths tectonic history, in dating past events and in reconstructing the
environment in different geological epochs.
1.1 Back in Time
Maybe that the most spectacular signatures of the presence of an Earth’s magnetic
field are the aurora borealis. These “northern” and “southern lights” have fascinated,
frightened and inspired humans for centuries, even millennia. These phenomena are
related to solar storms, when huge clouds of electrically charged particles travel into
© The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2022 3

M. Mandea, The Magnetic Declination, SpringerBriefs
in Earth Sciences, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-09476-7_1
4 1 Some Introductory Notions
space and may eventually collide with the Earth. Most of the charged particles are
deflected away; however, a number of of them can be captured in the Earths magnetic
field, accelerating down towards the North and South poles. Historical auroral reports
are important for the understanding of the long-term Sun-Earth interactions in the
millennial time scale extending beyond the times when instrumental observations
were made available. Auroral records have been sought in historical documents, the
most impressive being those belonging to the Babylonians and Assyrians, who had
started astrological observations and written comprehensive reports during the 8th
and 7th centuries BCE (Hayakawa et al. 2019).
A fascinating recent discovery is the description of “five-colored light” observed
in the northern part of the night sky towards the end of the reign of the fourth king
of the Chinese Zhou dynasty. van der Sluijs and Hayakawa (2022) discovered these
details in the Bamboo Annals, a fourth-century BCE text written on bamboo slips,
describing the legendary and early Chinese history (see Fig. 1.1).
This extreme event occurred during the mid-10th century BCE. The ancient peo-
ple in central China could have seen geomagnetic storms and the colorful lights
they produced. At that time the North magnetic pole inclined towards the Eurasian
continents, at about 15◦ closer to central China than the value it presents nowadays.
It is clear that the observations and writings related to the magnetic field have
a long, rich and international history. The attractive force of some natural rocks
was already known to ancient Greek philosophers, a couple of centuries BCE.
North/South-pointing devices, predecessors of modern magnetic compasses, were
used by the ancient Chinese from at least the second century CE.
When using a compass, what the object points to is the north. But, it usually
doesn’t point to the North geographic pole, so the indicated direction is that of the
North magnetic pole, and the story of this needle is told in this piece of writing.
The Epistola by the 13th century French scholar Petrus Peregrinus can be consid-
ered the first scientific treatise, providing compelling conclusions about the properties
of a natural magnet, based on observations and experiments. Seminal publications
such as De Magnete by William Gilbert in Britain (1600), or La Mecometrie by
Guillaume Le Nautonier in France (1602–1604) suggested that the Earth’s mag-
netism may be a property of the whole globe. Throughout that century, the number
of measurements of magnetic directional elements increased.
It is unclear when knowledge about the magnetic compass reached Europe, but the
usefulness of magnetic declination (defined as the deviation of compass needle from
the geographic North) and its regional variability for navigation were recognized
after the voyage of Christopher Columbus, at the end of the 15th century. The British
astronomer Edmond Halley charted declination in the Atlantic and published the first
magnetic map in 1701. Although inclination, the deviation of magnetic field lines
from the horizontal plane, was noticed during the 16th century, it was not measured
much until the late 18th century. The first half of the next century paved the way
from laboratory instruments to magnetic observatories. The number of highlights to
be traced back to the 18th century until nowadays is large, and the most important
ones will be considered here.
1.1 Back in Time 5
Fig. 1.1 A fragment of the Bamboo Annals. Courtesy: National Diet Library of Japan–see also
van der Sluijs and Hayakawa (2022)
In order to trace the history of magnetic declination back in time, information is

compiled from documents which indicate a former direction of the magnetic north
at a certain time and place. Such documents have been made available over the last
five centuries, due to the existence of many sources of data. At the beginning of
this time span, declination information can be inferred from: the axes of churches
and cathedrals, believed to be built in an exact east-west direction; from navigators’
logbooks in which they recorded their courses from one harbour to another; from
maps on which the magnetic north direction is inscribed by an arrow or by a schematic
compass; from instruments, such as sundials or compasses, with direct marks of
declination; from mining books or mining plots.
1.2 Geomagnetic Field Components
In order to follow the developments in measuring and understanding the geomagnetic

field, it is important to define it and explain the main sources. To define the geomag-
netic field in space, its vector nature needs to be considered. Indeed, nowadays, it is
customary to define the geomagnetic field at any particular place and time in terms
of the three components. The elements describing the directions of the field are dec-
lination (D) and inclination or dip (I ). Declination is defined as the angle between
magnetic north and true north, being positive when the angle measured is east of
true north and negative when west. I is defined by the angle between the horizontal
plane and the total field vector (F), named also field intensity. The other elements
are the horizontal component (H ), vertical component (Z ), and the north (X ) and
east (Y ) components of the horizontal intensity. Combinations of the three elements
are frequently used in geomagnetism to defined the full vector field, as H D Z , X Y Z
or F D I (see Fig. 1.2).
The magnetic field strength is measured in units called T esla; 1 Tesla (T ) is
defined as the field intensity generating 1 Newton (N ) of force per ampere ( A) of
Fig. 1.2 Components of the

geomagnetic field in a local
Cartesian coordinate system,
seen from northeast. After
Thébault (2007)
1.3 Geomagnetic Field Sources 7
current per meter (m) of conductor (1 T = 1 N · A−1 · m −1 = 1 kg · s−2 · A−1 ). A

magnetic field of 1T is quite strong, that is why the magnetic field at the Earth’s
surface is usually expressed in nanoTesla (nT ). Certain other non-SI units are still
occasionally used: in CGS units the 1Gauss(G) is 10−4 T esla and the gamma (γ ),
which is not much used nowadays, equalling 1 nanoTesla (nT ). For the angular
reference frame the direction of the magnetic field is expressed in degrees or radians.
Over the last decades, the geomagnetic field intensity measured on the surface of the
Earth had witnessed variations from the equator to the poles, in a range from some
20,000 nT to some 70,000 nT .
Essential knowledge of declination at the outset of oceanic navigation led to
more systematic observations all over the globe, both at sea and on land. In the
following, the main focus will be on magnetic declination. For this it is important
to underline that a compass tends to align itself with H ; navigators therefore have
had to apply a variable correction to their compass courses to regain true courses.
Magnetic declination on board a ship was often referred to as magnetic variation;
the needle was said to be north-westing or north-easting a certain number of degrees
from the true north.
Together with inclination, these were the first measurements to be made, defining
the direction of the local geomagnetic vector. The geomagnetic field intensity (the
magnitude of this vector) was first observed in a relative sense (from the 1790s) by
comparing the “swing time” of a needle at the desired location with that obtained at
a reference site. Absolute intensities were only recorded from the 1830s onward.
After a couple of centuries, when the observation of all field components became
possible, the establishment of permanent magnetic observatories represented a huge
step in expanding our understanding of the Earth’s magnetic field.
A vast collection of data, together with indirect observations throughout Earth’s
history, have allowed us to understand the large varieties of space and time variations
in the Earth’s magnetic field. Two main disciplines involved in studying the Earth’s
magnetic field evolved in parallel: geomagnetism focusing on the direct measurement
of the geomagnetic field in the recent past and the present, and palaeomagnetism that
endeavours to reconstruct the long history of the geomagnetic field from evidence
locked in ancient rock formations and to study its implications. Archaeomagnetism
can also be noted, having as aim the study of he magnetic properties preserved in
archaeological baked materials.
1.3 Geomagnetic Field Sources
The Earth’s magnetic field at any given time and position is the sum of the magnetic
field contributions from different sources, all of which vary in both space and time.
This very complex structure of the magnetic field makes it difficult to characterise
and understand this wide range of contributions. Deciphering the geomagnetic field
in order to additionally uncover and investigate the underlying sources and their
underlying processes has been a major challenge in geomagnetism. The study of the
Fig. 1.3 A schematic view of the geomagnetic field sources: internal fields (core and lithosphere)
and external sources (ionosphere and magnetosphere). After Mandea et al. (2019)
geomagnetic field continuously evolves as more magnetic field measurements are

acquired and new analysis technologies are developed.
An overview sketch of the spatial location in which the most important sources
which contribute to the magnetic field is shown in Fig. 1.3.
The Earth’s magnetic field is mainly due to a geodynamo mechanism in the liquid,
metallic outer core. The lithospheric contribution, due to rocks which acquired infor-
mation about the magnetic field at the time of their solidification from the molten
state or their sedimentation, adds to the dominant core magnetic field. In addition,
the external fields (ionospheric and magnetospheric fields) represent a third contri-
bution. Currents in the ionosphere, which are more driven by tides and heating in the
ionosphere, are more dominant during quiet magnetic conditions, being the source of
ionospheric contribution. The magnetospheric contribution is produced primarily by
the interaction of the solar wind with the magnetosphere and its intensity varies with
1.4 Geomagnetism, Archaeomagnetism and Palaeomagnetism 9
the solar wind speed and the orientation of the embedded magnetic field. The solar
wind modifies current systems in the magnetosphere and ionosphere surrounding the
Earth, producing magnetic variations on varying time scales from a second to a solar
cycle. Moreover, these highly variable external fields cause secondary, induced fields
in oceans and electrically conductive regions of the lithosphere and upper mantle.
When a measurement of the geomagnetic field is taken at any given point and
time, the resulting value contains the superposition of fields having different origins,
as discussed above and varying in magnitude. These are:
• the core field, generated in the fluid outer core, which ranges at the Earth’s surface
between some 20,000 nT at the equator to 70,000 nT at the poles;
• the lithospheric field, generated by magnetised rocks, generally having a strength
of the order of tens to a few hundreds of nT , but reaching a few thousand nT over
strong magnetic anomalies;
• the external fields, generated by the ionospheric and magnetospheric currents, and
varying from fractions of a nT up to a few thousand nT during large magnetic
storms;
• the electromagnetically induced field, generated by currents induced in the crust
and the upper mantle by the time-varying external field, amounting up to some
tens of nT .
• the ocean-induced field, as the oceans salty water flows through the magnetic field,
generating an electric current that induces a tiny magnetic signal.
Separating these contributions directly is impossible (Mandea and Purucker
2018). In 1838, using mathematical spherical harmonic functions, Gauss developed a
method to describe the geomagnetic field globally, thus providing a rough separation
between internal and external contributions to the geomagnetic field. Geomagnetic
field models based on spherical harmonics are still widely used, but due to the use of
different sources, a strict separation of all contributions remains a very challenging
task.
The geomagnetic field is also subject to temporal variations over a broad range of
time scales, including complete reversals of the core field on geological times. The
so-called short-term variations are detectable over time scales spanning fractions of a
second to decades. The very short period variations (seconds to hours) can safely be
attributed to sources external to the Earth, while the longer-period variations (annual
to decades) are due to both solar cycle variations with its harmonics and core field
variation (known as secular variation). These different variations are superimposed.
1.4 Geomagnetism, Archaeomagnetism

and Palaeomagnetism
Geomagnetism is one of the oldest of the geophysical sciences. As shown before,

the Earth’s magnetic field at any given location and time is the sum of the mag-
netic field contributions from a wide range of sources, all of which vary in both
space and time. Geomagnetism studies all aspects of the Earths magnetism, based on
direct measurements of the field and sustained new methodologies to analyse them.
Geomagnetism focuses on the direct measurements, recordings, models and inter-
pretation of different variations in the Earths natural magnetic fields. The ultimate
goal is the understanding of change in the Earth and its electromagnetic environment,
from deep within the core out into space. In the following, the focus is on these recent
changes.
The direct observations of the geomagnetic components can be completed with
indirect information, provided by archaeomagnetism and palaeomagnetism studies.
In the mid-19th century, the very first observation on the behavior of some rocks
provided an indication that these magnetised rocks may contain a fossil record of the
Earths magnetic field at the time their formation emerged. This idea was extended
to archaeological materials in the early 20th century. These two directions to gather
information about the history of the magnetic field have been developed, and during
the last century palaeomagnetism and archaeomagnetism studies have brought new
and interesting insights in understanding the Earths magnetic field evolution at mil-
lennial to geological time scales. A few major achievements are pointed out next,
after a short description of both research areas.
Archaeomagnetism offers information about the magnetic properties preserved
in archaeological baked materials. As for rocks, the geomagnetic field leaves its sig-
nature in the archaeological materials, their magnetic properties depending on the
Earths magnetic field at the time of the realisation of the archaeological objects. The
magnetisation of objects containing iron oxides is proportional to the geomagnetic
field intensity at the time and place when they cooled through the Curie temperature.
As an example, pottery or domestic kilns during their firing allow us to obtain infor-
mation on the evolution of the geomagnetic field direction and intensity over a region.
If hypotheses are formulated on the position of the archaeological objects during their
firing, then it is also possible to determine the ancient geomagnetic field inclination.
Archaeomagnetic studies of in-situ structures such as pottery and domestic kilns of
different ages allow us to recover the direction of the magnetic field (Thellier 1981).
In contrast, when the archaeological objects were displaced from the site where they
were originally fired (in unknown position), such as pottery, bricks or tiles, most
often they gave information only on the ancient geomagnetic field intensity. Over
the last two decades, archaeomagnetism research has significantly developed with
an increase in the number of archaeomagnetic studies and researchers in the world.
This renewed interest is related to the need to extend the records provided by direct
geomagnetic measurements into the past, which began around the second half of the
16th century, in a few locations in Western Europe (Alexandrescu et al. 1997). The
archaeomagnetic data are valuable inputs for describing the Earth’s magnetic field
behaviour on temporal scales ranging from tens of years to millennia (Korte et al.
2019). A recent review by Gallet (2021) points some key contributions made in the
field of archaeomagnetism and palaeomagnetism by Paul-Louis Mercanton, Pierre
David, Bernard Brunhes, and Raymond Chevallier in the early 20th century, between
the fundamental work by Giuseppe Folgheraiter in the 1890s and Emile Thellier in
the 1930s.
Fig. 1.4 Magnetic field reversals for the past 170 Ma, since middle Jurassic. Black zones indicate
periods where the polarity is the same as nowadays, while white areas indicate periods with reversed
polarity. After Earle (2019)
Palaeomagnetism is the study of the Earth’s magnetic field preserved in dif-

ferent rocks which carry specific magnetic properties. For example, the lodestone
has been indicated as a naturally magnetic variety of magnetite, strongly magne-
tised. This stone, as indicated in Part II of this book, was used to realise the first
compasses. In addition to the magnetite, some other minerals are characterised by
magnetic properties, such as the hematite and the ilmenite. So generally speaking,
rocks carry different magnetisation properties, being nevertheless less magnetised
than the magnetite. To understand how the magnetic property can appear, an easy
visualising example is given by lava cooling. When a lava starts to cool and solidify
to become solid, the magnetite crystals begin to grow. The magnetic minerals align
with the Earths magnetic eld at the time of formation, like tiny compass needles.
As all magnetic minerals point in the geomagnetic field direction at that time of
formation, they produce a measurable magnetic field. These magnetic properties are
measured, on samples collected in the field.
The history of palaeomagnetism starts at the beginning of the 20th century in
France, with Bernard Brunhes. Brunhes found baked clays magnetised in an opposite
direction to that of the current geomagnetic field, and searched for an explanation. He
realised that these findings are important and suggested that the Earths magnetic field
had reversed its polarity in the past (Brunhes 1906). In the 1920s, Motonori Matuyama
was the first to estimate the timing of magnetic reversals. Under the assumption that
the Earths magnetic field averages to a geocentric dipole, the present configura-
tion of the dipole field with the magnetic North pole close to the geographic North
pole is considered as a normal polarity interval, while the opposite configuration is
considered as a reversed polarity period (Fig. 1.4).
The occurrence and duration of reversals is not constant throughout time. The
Earth’s magnetic field reversal history is now well-known for the past 175 million
years and more approximately understood over the last million years. The last geo-
magnetic reversal is named after the pioneers in this domain and is known as the
Brunhes-Matuyama reversal. It occurred about 780,000 years ago. Different esti-
mates indicate different durations for the directional shift between the two opposite
polarities. This is an intriguing topic and the estimates varied between some 100 years
up to cca. 22,000 years. Indeed, Bradford (2004) suggested that this event took some
several thousand years, and Valet et al. (2012) indicated that it lasted less than 1,000
year. Recently, some other investigations of this event suggested the possibility that
it happened very quickly, in less than 100 years (Sagnotti et al. 2014). This very rapid
reversal duration is much faster than the generally accepted one, of some thousands
of years. It was obtained from measurements showing that the geomagnetic field is
weakening 10 times faster than normal. More recently, Singer et al. (2019) estimated
that the reversal lasted some 22,000 years, a finding which is mirrored by a numeri-
cal geodynamo simulation that may capture much of the observed reversal process.
These different estimates underline the difficulty to estimate the apparent duration
of the event at a given location which depends on the geomagnetic latitude and local
effects of non-dipole components of the magnetic field during the transition.
Another significant change in the Earths magnetic field is produced during geo-
magnetic excursions. Unlike reversals, an excursion does not permanently change
the global orientation of the field. These events represent a decrease in the field inten-
sity up to some 20% of its normal value and usually last a few thousand to a few
tens of thousands of years. The Earth’s magnetic field remains largely dipolar, but
wanders away from the rotational axis (Valet et al. 2012). One of the first investigated
excursions is the Laschamp event, dated at around 41,000–42,000 years ago, which
occurred during the last ice age (Korte et al. 2019).
The knowledge of the long-term evolution of the geomagnetic field is important
for many aspects. Two most intriguing ones are presented here.
Sea-floor spreading and the reversals. The first example is linked to magnetic
stripes recorded by a magnetometer at sea, as measured for the first time in the
late 1950s and early 1960s (Raff and Mason 1961). Lawrence Morley was one of
the first to suggest that the magnetic anomalies could be a kind of tape-recorder of
the symmetric spreading of the ocean floor through time. In 1963, he submitted his
hypothesis for publication, but the journals considered the idea too speculative to be
published. In 1963, essentially the same hypothesis by Frederick Vine and Drum-
mond Matthews was published (Vine and Matthews 1963). Subsequently, Morleys
contribution was recognised, and the concept is now known as the Vine-Matthews-
Morley hypothesis. These observations found an explanation some years later, being
interpreted as records of changing polarity of geomagnetic field during ocean floor
spreading. A well-known example is offered by the sea-floor spreading in the North
Atlantic. This process creates new crust at the ridges from upwelling magma, which
cools and moves away from a ridge, it locks into its minerals the direction of Earth’s
magnetic field at the time of formation. A recent model based on magnetic field mea-
surements provided by the CHAMP and Swarm satellites together with near-surface
scalar anomaly (Thébault et al. 2021) data gives a unique view of the lithospheric
field over the Atlantic region (Fig. 1.5). The possibility to investigate the properties
of the sea-floor revealed how tectonic plates process acts.
Over the last years, some extraordinary possibilities provided by the GNSS
(Global Navigation Satellite System) and by the satellite radar interferometry have
allowed to survey the plate motions at the level of millimetre.
Human evolution and excursions. The example considered here is linked to
the last excursion, Laschamp, and some interesting studies related to the human
evolution during that period. Based on the discovered mammalian fossils in Eurasia
and Australia and dated at being from about 40 millennia ago, it appears that an
important dieoff of large mammals, as well as of the Neanderthals was recorded. The
Fig. 1.5 The striped pattern of magnetised rock spreading away from the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. After
Thébault et al. (2021)
causes of the disappearance of Neanderthals remain still debatable. The competition

with modern man who arrived at this time in the European territories occupied by
Neanderthals is often invoked, but this cohabitation is not fully established. Another
scenario highlights the impact of a short-lived cold climatic episode, but Neanderthals
underwent other more severe climatic changes during their 250,000 years. Another
hypothesis is linked to the diminishing of the magnetic field during the Laschamp
excursion. During this period, the Earth’s magnetic field was very weak, reaching a
value about 10 times lower than its present value, and probably lasted a few hundred
years, if not more (Valet and Valladas 2010). The coincidence of this long period of
weak field with the gradual decline of the Neanderthal population is disturbing.
The explanation arises in the fact that the minima in the Earth’s magnetic field
strength modifies the shape of the magnetosphere, which protects humans from galac-
tic and cosmic radiations. The latter are also strongly attenuated by the atmosphere
so that in principle they do not represent a real danger. But the weakening of the mag-
netic screen allows the protons emitted during solar flares to penetrate deeper into
the layers of the atmosphere where they then generate cascade chemical reactions
which lead in particular to the formation of nitric oxide, a substance which destroys
the ozone layer. These reactions are not limited to the polar regions but occur up
to mid-latitude. Neanderthals, who were spread over European territory, therefore
had to face extra UV radiation for a long period with significant peaks during solar
flares. The health impacts associated with UV exposure are multiple and well known.
However, it is not clear why the Neanderthals and Homo Sapiens were not similarly
affected. Recent analysis of the ancient DNA of Neanderthals revealed that this
deceased cousin had crossed Homo sapiens and that this encounter had been fruit-
ful, since part of the Neanderthal genome was found in that of current non-African
populations: on average 2% of their DNA was of Neanderthal heritage. A recent
study by Chen et al. (2020) indicates that there is also a part of Neanderthal among
Africans today, as “in every modern human population studied to date”. Moreover,
there is no substantial difference in skin pigmentation between Neanderthals and
Homo Sapiens. At least a fraction of Neanderthals apparently had the same pale skin
and/or red hair observed in some modern humans, and certainly made them vulnera-
ble to the deleterious effects of the UV exposure. Thus, this geomagnetic event may
have gradually caused or, in any case, contributed to their extinction. As for modern
humans, their survival is undoubtedly due to the fact that they were more numerous
and distributed in various geographical areas, in particular in low latitudes unaffected
by ozone depletion. The last intriguing element in the story is the documented rise in
cave art right about 41,000–42,000 years ago, with outlined hand-prints made from
“red ochre” (hematitic iron oxides). The red ochre is also used as a skin protection
by some Indigenous communities even today. Maybe it was also used thousands of
years ago!
Finally, let us note that prominent low geomagnetic field intensity episodes at
285 ka, 190 ka, 100120 ka, 64 ka, 41 ka, and 13 ka appear to correspond
to important times in evolution of hominins and other large mammals
(Channell and Vigliotti 2019).
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doi.org/10.1038/199947a0
Part II
The Beginning of Magnetism
Chapter 2
The Poetry and Philosophy
of the Beginnings
In the previous passage, two words can attract everyone’s attention: “compass”
and “direction”. Two words, the quintessence of some well-known expressions and
idioms used in our everyday life, as: “I lost my north” or “Je suis déboussolé”.1 But
what is hidden, exactly, behind these words? Which history and which explanation?
And, to complicate the landscape even more, it is enough to note that the word “com-
pass” is linked to magnetism, another word balancing between myth and reality...
To understand the evolutionary process from the idea that magnetic “virtue” derives
from heaven, through the gradual realisation that surrounding magnetism is linked
to our dynamic Planet, a long journey was needed. And its main protagonist is the
magnetic needle.
2.1 From Floating Ideas to Floating Needles
Over the last millennia, the discussions on magnetism have moved from the the-
ological to the romantic and the mundane, from the Greek cosmology to the new
vision of the dynamic Earth. The concept of magnetism has proven both elusive and
controversial, and it is likely that it will preserve these labels.
Maybe the first “magnetic” sign dates back about three millennia ago. Maybe
not. Who was the first to understand the awesome power of magnetism? Many great
discoveries are surrounded by myth and legend, and magnetism, as with many inven-
tions, scientific theories, and mathematical proofs, most likely started back in the old
Chinese and Greek cultures. These two worlds were interested in magnetic phe-
nomena, and tried to explain them. However, some other cultures might have been
interested by the magnetic properties of rocks. Therefore, a retrospective look at the
history of magnetism means (almost) simultaneously investigating several locations
1 I am confused translation from French.

20 2 The Poetry and Philosophy of the Beginnings
around the world. Besides the Greek and Chinese civilisations, Mesopotamia and
Mesoamerica feature as particularly interesting.
2.1.1 Mesopotamia
Mesopotamian civilisation was known to be a flourishing one. This is due not only
to its impressive architecture, but also to the Sumerian and Akkadian texts providing
information on the use of magnetic materials. Iron oxide rocks (hematite, goethite
and magnetite) were largely used for weight stones and cylinder seals around 2000
BC. Melein (2018) showed that technological changes determined the use and end
of the use of iron oxide rocks. Cuneiform texts recorded, among other sources of
information, the earliest description of magnetism known to mankind.
According to an ancient table diagram, the Mesopotamians used a device to iden-
tify the direction of a compass. Two compass-points are correlated with the positions
of sunrise and sunset, depending on every season. The user might have been able to
correlate the location of the Sun, the time of the year and the wind directions in order
to define the compass-point direction. The Mesopotamian astronomers identified
sunrise and sunset with the due east and west, for the latitude of Babylon. Horowitz
(1998) described an “ancient compass”, based only on less reliable elements, invoked
as indicators of directions; beside the Sun and winds, stars are also noted. However,
no finding about a “magnetic” compass is noticeable.
2.1.2 Mesoamerica
Some well known pre-Columbian archaeological sites are located in Mexico. There
is some evidence that the Mesoamerican people were somehow familiar with the
magnetic properties of rocks. In 1966, an important excavation work was done for an
Olmec site situated at San Lorenzo in southern Mexico. During this archaeological
excavation a magnetised, hematite-rich bar was discovered. This elongated flattened
piece was dated to 1400–1000 BC, and this specific shape suggested that it has been
fashioned to be used as a compass (Carlson 1975). Some ten years later, in 1975,
archaeological excavations were directed at Izapa site, which reached its apogee
between 850–100 BC, with a hypothesis that the site may have been settled as early
as 1500 BC, making it as old as the Olmec site of San Lorenzo. A basaltic sculpture
with a strong magnetic field was discovered at Izapa. The form of the sculpture is
disputable, representing either a frog (Norman 1976) or a turtle’s head (Malmström
2008). Interestingly, the magnetisation of the statue is well determined by a north
pole in its snout and a south pole at the back of its head. Is this the first possible
compass? Controversial hypotheses have been formulated. As this object is the only
one on that site showing magnetic properties, it has been suggested that the strong
magnetisation was induced by lightning.
2.1 From Floating Ideas to Floating Needles 21
Fig. 2.1 Magnetic anomaly

observed on a sculpture of
the Monte Alto site, closely
related to carved anatomical
features. The magnetic field
scale is given in microTesla.
After Fu et al. (2019)
Magnetism has been also detected in sculptures ranging from southern Mexico
to Guatemala, the region where the Monte Alto culture flourished. Monte Alto has
become known for the potbelly statutes, or “barrigones”, large sculptures which
can measure more than 2 m high and weigh some 10 tonnes or even more. Peo-
ple who lived some 2,500 years ago near the Pacific coast (nowadays the territory
of Guatemala) made gigantic human sculptures characterised by some magnetised
parts (foreheads, cheeks and navels). Since certain distinctive patterns of magnetism
frequently appear, one may claim that the sculptures were crafted by artisans who
were aware of these properties.
Fu et al. (2019) provided the first detailed analysis of how these sculpted body
parts were intentionally placed in magnetic fields on large rocks. Lightning proba-
bly stroke magnetised sections of rock which were then sculpted into stylised round
figures. The authors used hand-held scanning magnetometers to map the distribution
of magnetisation on eleven basalt sculptures on the Monte Alto site. The measure-
ments carried out on four sculptures, with a resolution of 1 cm, reveal that they had
been magnetised by lightning prior to the sculpting process (Fig. 2.1). Indeed, light-
ning produces very strong magnetic fields, many orders of magnitude stronger than
normal, and the affected rocks might change their magnetic properties. The corre-
spondence between the magnetic anomalies of the sculptures and specific anatomical
characteristics is non-random and the apparently intentional localisation of carved
anatomical features and pre-existing magnetised regions implies that the sculptors
were able to detect the presence of abnormal magnetic fields.
Artisans likely manipulated blocks of naturally magnetised minerals near iron-
rich basalt blocks to find areas in the rock where magnetic forces were repelled.
If Mesoamerican people had an understanding of the natural magnetic properties
of stones, they were probably able to indicate the locations of magnetic anomalies
using iron-oxide-rich artefacts with a strong magnetisation. Ancient Mesoamerican
culture remains famously complex, and no doubt deserves recognition as one of the
oldest providing known magnetic artefacts.
Fig. 2.2 A replica of the

aptly named “South pointing
spoon”, thought to be the first
magnetised object ever used
to tell direction. Courtesy:
Public domain—https://
nationalmaglab.org
2.1.3 China
The Chinese culture mentions the first compasses; however, they were not designed
for navigation, but for divination, games, and for figuratively indicating people the
way, in an attempt to harmonise people’s lives with the environment. According to
Needham (1959) the Chinese were the first to understand the proprieties of lodestone.
The original Chinese compass was a spoon carved from a lodestone, indicating the
south direction (“south controlling spoon”—si non shau). Figure 2.2 shows a replica:
on a bronze plate, the little metal spoon balances exquisitely on its bowl, and each
time it is tossed or spun, it comes to rest with its neck aiming south.
At the time of the engineer and inventor Ma Jun (cca. 200–265), we find references
to south-pointing chariots. They worked differently, generally based on a mechanism
to allow the rotating road wheels to be mechanically operated in order to keep the
pointer aimed correctly. These mechanisms had no magnets and did not automatically
detect which direction was south.
It is only at the beginning of the second millennium that magnetism becomes a
basis for navigation. Notes about the existence of magnetised fish-shaped objects,
placed in a water-filled bowl, indicate that these were used to determine the direction,
alongside the south-pointing chariot. Indeed, the Chinese literature mentions the word
“compass” around 1080, a century before the first mention of the devise in Europe
(Mills 2004). This is due to Shen Kuo, a Chinese scientist and statesman of the Song
Dynasty (960–1279). His contributions extended to almost every field of the epoch’s
knowledge. He provided the first account of a suspended magnet compass and its
use for navigation, the concept of magnetic poles (“the needle will point south but
with a deviation”), and even that of declination (“[the magnetic needles] are always
displaced slightly east rather than pointing due south”). Shen Kuo is quoted by
Needham (1959): “(It may be made to) float on the surface on water, but it is then
rather unsteady. It may be balanced on the finger-nail, or on the rim of a cup, where
it can be made to turn more easily, but these supports being hard and smooth, it is
likely to fall off. It is best to suspend it by a single cocoon fibre of new silk attached to
the centre of the needle by a piece of wax the size of a mustard-seed—then, hanging
2.2 The Greatest of Centuries 23
in a windless place, it will always point to the south.” As Shen Kuo used a South
orientation and since the needle was displaced slightly eastward, he observed what
we call nowadays a negative declination.
2.1.4 Greece
A few initial thoughts about magnetic attraction and repulsion forces of specific
lodestone can be found in classical Greek writings, namely the record of lodestone
made by Thales of Miletus. The ancient Greeks credited Thales of Miletus with the
discovery of the attraction of lodestone to iron and other lodestones (Keithley 1999).
As the attractive power of lodestone has fascinated people, legends exist about it.
The “magnetic” story starts in the region of Magnesia (modern-day Turkey) where
Magnes, a shepherd in need of new pastures, led his sheep to the feet of Mount
Ida. Walking with his sheep, Magnes stepped on a peculiar rock. The metal tip
of his iron crook was strongly attracted by that specific stone. Magnes, intrigued,
unearthed a black rock with unusual properties. This lodestone discovered by Magnes
of Magnesia was hence named by the ancients Greeks “magnetite”.
So, the ancient Greeks were familiar with the attractive property of iron. In Plato’s
“Ion” we can read that a number of iron rings can be supported in a chain by the
Heraclean Stone. Likewise, Lucretius described an experiment in which iron filings
are made to rise up, held by a magnet. Some other writers note that images of the
gods and goddesses were suspended in the air by lodestone inserted in the ceilings
of the temples of Diana of Ephesus or of Serapis in Alexandria. Thus, the ancients
had a good knowledge of magnetic properties. Nevertheless, it is surprising that
neither the Greeks nor the Romans, despite having possessed extensive knowledge
of philosophy, seemed able to explain the magnet property.
The word “magnet” was included in the Latin vocabulary somewhere around
the 1st century. From Latin the word spread to most Western European languages
(English, German and Danish magnet, Dutch magneet, Spanish, Portuguese Italian,
magnete). In French the word changed the root completely, becoming “aimant” (from
Latin adamas), and this is largely used in both sense (as a noun meaning “magnet”,
or as verb meaning “to love”). Both are related to... attraction!
2.2 The Greatest of Centuries
Named by some scholars “the greatest of centuries”, the 13th century saw cultural
highlights of enormous importance. However, during these dark ages, pieces of lode-
stone mounted as magnets were employed in the “black arts”. This century was also
the time of poetry and troubadours, mastering the beauty of describing the properties
of a compass. From two of them, Guyot de Provins (also spelled Guiot de Provins) and
William the Clerk, two masterpieces remain, “La Bible” and “Complainte d’Amour”,
respectively.
Around 1204, Guyot de Provins composed “La Bible” which does not refer to the
Holy Bible, but points to the medieval French title meaning “satire”. In this satirical
poem he criticised the vices of men of all states, from princes to paupers. This poem,
which consists of 2700 lines, is one of the oldest books which includes a reference
to the magnetic compass: it features under the name of “Marinette”.
Although, William the Clerk’s poem cannot be dated, it was probably written after
that of Guyot de Provins (Keithley 1932). In a translation from French made during
the 19th century, a magnetic needle and its pointing direction towards the polar star
brings us emotion, even after so many centuries:
When before the northern gale
Flies through raging waves, the sail,
That pure beam serene and clear,
Saves the bark from danger near.
When the blackness of the night
Cloud-enshrouded veils its light
Still it doth a virtue own
Drawing iron to the stone.
Guiding safely those who roam,
To the sweet delights of home.
Who would of his course be sure,
When the clouds the sky obscure,
He an iron needle must
In the cork wood firmly thrust...
Let the cork on water swim.
When at length the tremor ends,
Note the way the needle tends;
Though its place no eye can see
There the polar star will be...
The 13th century offers us several astonishing notes about the property of the
magnetic needle, all around Europe, from England to France, from Germany, to Spain.
Several relevant accounts written before the well-known letter by Petrus Peregrinus
will include the French cardinal Jacques de Vitry and his “Historia Orientalis”, where
one can read “An iron needle, after having been in contact with the lodestone, turns
towards the North star, so that it is very necessary for those who navigate the seas.”
Albertus Magnus, in his “De Mineralibus” noted “It is the end of the lodestone which
makes the iron that touched it turn to the north (ad zoron) and which is of use to
mariners; but the other end of the needle turns toward the south (ad aphron).” In the
Spanish code of laws, starting in 1256, one can read “Just as mariners are guided
during the night by the needle, which replaces for them the shores and pole star
alike, by showing them the course to pursue both in fair weather and foul, so those
who are called upon to advise the King must always be guided by a spirit of justice.”
References 25
Exiled for a time in France, the Italian Brunetto Latini signed there his three major
masterpieces, between 1260 and 1266, known as “Le Livre du Trsor” in French.
In this book one can read “The sailors navigate the seas guided by the two stars
called the tramontanes, and each of the two parts of the lodestone directs the end of
the needle to the star to which that part itself turns.” Raymond Lully published in
1272 “De Contemplatione” where we can find two interesting notes “as the needle,
after having touched the lodestone, so the mariner’s needle directs them over the sea
(sicut acusper naturam vertitur ad septentrionem dum sittacta a magnete)” and “as
the nautical needle directs mariners in their navigation (sicufc acus nautica dirigit
marinariosin sua navigation)”. This means the use of the needle by sailors.
As the importance of navigation developed, the direction of geographic north
becomes linked increasingly with measurements of latitude. The astrolabe was gen-
erally used for determining latitude by measuring the angle between the horizon and
Polaris (Pole Star). The position of Polaris is less than 1◦ from the north celestial
pole, directly above the geographic north pole. This connection between the align-
ment of the magnet and the polar star remained a robust hypothesis for hundreds of
years. Apparently, Roger Bacon with his “Opus Minus” (1266) was the first Euro-
pean to question the universality of the north-south alignment of the compass. He
questioned the possible link between the four Earth’s points (north, south, east, west)
and a magnetised needle. If the needle is magnetised in any of those points, it would
be attracted to that direction. It is not clear if Bacon’s hypothesis is based on an
experiment. Bacon linked lodestone to the Earth, but there is no recorded statement
suggesting that the Earth, by its properties, affects the lodestone.
Irrespective of the name used, from “bossola” in Italian to “fleur-de-lys” en French,
from “mariners compass” in English to “mouassala” in Arabian, the compass has fas-
cinated humanity over millennia. And whether it had been the Greek or the Chinese,
or other civilisations, the discovery of magnets represented the essence of the very
first device to measure the geomagnetic field and helped change the world forever.
References
Carlson JB (1975) Lodestone compass: Chinese or olmec primacy? Science 189:753–760. https://
doi.org/10.1126/science.189.4205.753
Fu RR, Kirschvink JL, Carter N, Mazariegos OC, Chigna G, Gupta G, Grappone M (2019) Knowl-
edge of magnetism in ancient mesoamerica: precision measurements of the potbelly sculptures
from monte alto, guatemala. J Archaeol Sci 106:29–36. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jas.2019.03.001
Horowitz W (1998) Mesopotamian cosmic geography (mesopotamian civilizations, 8). Eisenbrauns,
Winona Lake, Indiana, p 410. (0931464994)
Keithley JF (1999) The story of electrical and magnetic measurements: from 500 b.c. to the 1940s.
IEEE Press, Piscata way, N.J, p 264. 0-7803-1193-0
Malmström VH (2008) Magnetism in mesoamerica. In: Selin H (ed). Springer, Dordrecht, pp 1265–
1267. 978-1-4020-4425-0. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4020-4425-0-8713
Melein MM (2018) Iron oxide rock artefacts in mesopotamia c. 2600-1200 bc: an interdisciplinary
study of hematite, goethite and magnetite objects. Archaeopress Archaeology, Summertown
Pavilion, 18–24 Middle Way, Oxford OX2 7LG, pp 268. (978 1 78491 964 1)
Mills AA (2004) The lodestone: history, physics, and formation. Ann Sci 61(3):273–319. https://
doi.org/10.1080/00033790310001642812
Mitchell AC (1932) Chapters in the history of terrestrial magnetism. Terr Magn Atmos Electric
37(2):105–146. https://doi.org/10.1029TE037i002p00105
Needham J (1959) Science and civilisation in China. Mathematics and the sciences of the heavens
and the earth, vol 3. Cambridge University Press, New York, p 877
Norman VG (1976) Izapa sculpture. Brigham Young University, New World Archaeological Foun-
dation, p 455
Chapter 3
The First Attempts to Observe
the Magnetic Declination
3.1 Empirical Theories
The invention of the compass was a technological achievement, and the properties of
lodestone stimulated curiosity and marked the beginning of scientific investigations.
The first reference of a compass in the known European texts is recorded around 1190.
At that time Alexander Neckam referred briefly to a form of compass; however it
is not completely clear if the information was linked to a pivoted compass or not.
Nevertheless, the lack of details about this compass, the fact that there are no other
European references about it have led to the conclusion that the note made by Neckam
(1190) was about an imported instrument, maybe a Chinese one.
During the late-medieval to early-modern time the studies in magnetism, mainly
qualitative, were based on a floating magnetic body technique. From the status of
sharing an experiment, studies in magnetism went to the next step of understanding
phenomena. Notable experiments are those realised by Petrus Peregrinus, known also
as Pierre de Maricourt, summarised in his known treatises “L’epistola de Magnete”
(1269). Several manuscript copies of the “L’epistola de Magnete” exist in some
European libraries: the Bodleian has six; the Vatican, two; Trinity College, Dublin,
the Bibliothque Nationale de Paris or libraries in Leyden, Geneva and Turin, one
each. This letter was addressed by Petrus Peregrinus to Sygerus de Foucaucourt, a
knight who happened to be his close neighbour in Picardy (France).
The epoch of Petrus Peregrinus’ letter is that of natural philosophical considera-
tions with practical matters. The brevity of text highlights Peregrinus’ great capacity
to summarise his own experiments and arguments. The text provides, for the first
time, some properties of magnets and proposes the construction of some magnetic
instruments. The text is divided in two parts, containing ten and three chapters,
respectively. The first part describes mainly some properties of the lodestone, the
most notable of which being its dipolar nature, and investigates a possible magnetic
attraction law. The second part proposes the construction of some magnetic instru-
ments, namely two compasses, one floating and one pivoted (Fig. 3.1). “L’epistola
de Magnete” offers the very first detailed description of the compass in Europe.

28 3 The First Attempts to Observe the Magnetic Declination
Fig. 3.1 Pivoting compass needle in a 14th-century handcopy of Petrus Peregrinus’s letter (page
28). After Peregrinus (1269)
Peregrinus clearly formulated how the concept of “poles” may be transferred from
astronomy to magnetism: “Since the north and south parts of the heavens are known,
these same points will then be easily recognised in the stone because each part of the
lodestone will turn to the corresponding one of the heavens”. In this way the pole of
the magnet pointing north of the heavens is defined as the north pole of the needle,
with an identical approach for the south pole. This choice was not arbitrary, as not
being aware of the magnetic variation, the needle just aligns itself with the two poles
of the heavens.
Peregrinus used experiments to support or formulate his theoretical considera-
tions and also provided a set of reflections about the access of the experimenter to
knowledge. In his setup of floating magnets on wooden “vessels”, with well-marked
“N” and “S”, he came to a surprising conclusion for that time: the rule of attraction:
“Know then that this is the Law: the north pole of the lodestone attracts the south
pole of the another, while the south pole attracts the north”. Of course, it is important
3.2 The First Observations 29
to note that that law didn’t take into account the names given to the poles (in Chap. 9
they are called A and B). Peregrinus further introduced a method of distinguishing
the poles, with an explanatory mechanism based on the mirroring of the celestial
spheres into the magnets.
“L’epistola de Magnete” was largely circulated during the next centuries. An
earlier edition was published in Rome in 1520, but the text was attributed to Raymond
Lullus. The very first printed form under Peregrinus’ name is dated 1558, issued by
Achilles Pirmin Gasser, with an introduction and postscript by himself. This letter
was also a case of plagiarism. Indeed, in 1562 Jean Taisnier (Taisner) published a
nearly word-for-word copy of Grasser’s edition, without citing Petrus Peregrinus!
Some decades later, William Gilbert (see Part III) was very critical with respect
to this practice (“May the Gods damn all such shame, pilfered, distorted work”)
(Smith, 1970).
3.2 The First Observations
3.2.1 Magnetic Declination
The magnetised needle of a compass aligns itself with the direction of the Earth’s
magnetic field, indicating the magnetic north. In most locations on Earth, the mag-
netic north differs from the true north, so magnetic declination, as defined previously,
has to be taken into account. Magnetic declination varies depending on position on
the Earth’s surface and changes over time. It is expressed in degrees east or west.
An eastern declination is usually represented by a positive value and the western
declination is stated as a negative value.
The traditional view remains that the discovery of declination must go to the
Chinese. On the European side a large credit has been given to Christopher Columbus
who noted magnetic declination on his first voyage to the West Indies in 1492.
Nowadays it is clear that Columbus did not discover the magnetic declination, as
its existence had been known in Europe as early as 1450 (Smith 1968). Indeed, it
appears that the oldest declination value given by a magnetic compass dates back to
1451. This instrument was made by Peuerbach in Vienna. However, it is not clear if
Peuerbach understood the deviation from the geographic north purely as a property
of the magnetic field or partly as one of the instrument. With regard to the compasses
he produced, three more were made at the same location between 1451 and 1456, and
they indicate different declination values. Around that time, declination is marked
next to compasses built into portable sundials as it was the case for Nuremberg, and
Augsburg (Germany).
Considered a very interesting source for ancient measurements, ancient sundials
often contain declination information, which is needed for an accurate orientation of
the sundial by magnetic compass. One of the oldest values comes from a “Kompas”
(the term used for pocket-sized sundials produced in Nuremberg), in 1465, with a
Fig. 3.2 Sundial with compass made in Nuremberg in 1601. Courtesy: Niemegk Observatory
collection (Germany)
declination estimation of +6◦ (Zinner 1979). The value of declination is the same on
other objects, i.e. +6◦ (Körber 1964). Another well-known instrument (“compass”)
maker in Nuremberg was Erhard Etzlaub. Only two of Etzlaub’s pieces survived.
Germanisches Nationalmuseum (Nuremberg) hosts one from 1511. Another one,
dating from 1513, seems to be located in the USA and was photographed by Drecker
in 1925. The example chosen for illustration is one of the oldest sundials to be seen
and used for possible measurements, as part of the Niemegk magnetic observatory
collection (Germany), made also in Nuremberg, in 1601 (Fig. 3.2).
Another source of information regarding the ancient declination values may be

obtained from historical maps, which can sometimes be indicative of declination. For
this kind of information, one needs to go back to Erhard Etzlaub, in cca. 1492. At that
time, he produced the Road Map of Central Europe, a map of cca. 42 × 30 cm, with
a compass at the bottom of the map and an indication of declination. One example
chosen here comes from 1613. Figure 3.3 shows the example for Munich (Bachmann
1942), with only one part reproduced from the original map (32 × 47 cm), on which
the place (Monachivm, Bavaria), the year (1613), and the compass are shown. The
declination in Munich at this epoch can be estimated at +8 to +9◦ , with an uncertainty
around +/−30 , based on the reading of the angle between the true and magnetic
north directions indicated on the printed compass (Fig. 3.3), as explained by Mandea
and Korte (2007).
3.2.2 Magnetic Dip
The second angle characterising the geomagnetic field is the magnetic inclination also
known as magnetic dip or dip angle. It is defined as the angle made with the horizontal
by the Earth’s magnetic field lines. At the measurement point, the positive inclination
values indicate that the geomagnetic field points downward, while negative values
show that it points upward.
The first record of measuring the dip was described by Georg Hartmann in 1544,
in a private letter to a Prussian Duke, discovered only in 1831 in the Prussian State
Archive Königsberg (Merrill and McElhinny 1983). He noted, without accurately
measuring the dip angle around 1544.
The first accurate measurement of inclination was made in 1576, in London by
an instrument maker, Robert Norman. He described the method of measuring the
magnetic dip in his treatise “The Newe Attractive”, in 1581. The treatise contains
two parts, one dedicated to the general properties of magnetism, and one to exper-
iments. This treatise might be regarded as surprising, since the author was not a
natural philosopher but a nautical instruments builder, mainly magnetic needles and
compasses. In this work, Norman noticed the tendency of the magnetic needle to
point downwards (“Having made many and divers compasses [...] I found contin-
ually, that after I touched the yrons with the Stone, that presently the north point
thereof would bend or Decline under the Horizon in same quantitie”).
As a compass maker, Norman had to find a solution, so as to better understand
the effects on the needle and its deviations in the vertical plan. This angle is the one
made by the needle of a vertically held compass. Practically, the ordinary compass
needles may be weighed against dip or may be unable to move freely in the correct
plane. Norman described his experiments like this: “It chanced ... that there came
to my hands an Instrument to bee made, with a Needle of sixe inches long which
needle after I had polished, cut off at Just length, and made it to stand levell upon
the pinne, so that nothing rested but onely the touching of it with the stone: when
I touched the same, presently the north part thereof Declined downe in such sort,
Fig. 3.3 Left side of a Munich map from 1613 (made by Tobias Volkmer) with a compass indicating
declination. After Mandea and Korte (2007)
that beeing constrained to cut away some of that part, to make it equall againe, in
the end I cut it too short, and so spoyled the needle wherein I had taken so much
paynes. Hereby beeing stroken in some choller, I applyed my self to seeke further into
this effect, and making certayne learned and expert men (my friends) acquainted in
this matter, they advised me to frame some Instrument, to make some exact tryal,
how much the needle touched with the Stone would Decline, or what greatest Angle
it would make with thee plaine of the Horizon” (after Bauer 1902). The instrument
built by Norman allows the needle to freely move in the vertical plan. So, the value
of this angle can be measured by this special instrument, known as a dip circle (dip
compass). In the Northern hemisphere, generally, the higher the latitude the more
the magnetic field points downward. It was with such a type of instrument that, in
1576, Norman measured a value of inclination of 71◦ 50 in London.
The dip compass has a magnetic needle. The needle moves around a horizontal
rotation axis, going through its centre of gravity and perpendicular to its magnetic
moment, which can be read from the line of the needle point. If the rotation axis
is perpendicular to the magnetic meridian, the needle moment is in line with the
direction of the Earth magnetic field. The extremities of the needle’s rotation axis roll
on two agate sheets situated on the same horizontal plane. To measure the dip, the user
finds the position of the needle extremities on the apparatus graduated vertical circle.
The vertical circle is considered normal at the needle rotation axis. The graduation
line 0◦ −180◦ is made horizontal when the apparatus is levelled. This instrument
needs to be carefully devised in order to reduce the friction in the pivoting of the
magnetic needle. The main drawback with this type of instrument is the impossibility
of obtaining a perfectly cylindrical pivot axis, with the result that the needle tends to
have privileged equilibrium positions. Two instruments, at the same time and place,
can give values of inclination which differ by as much as 2 arc minutes (Fig. 3.4).
But what causes this needle behaviour? Norman made experiments to verify if
there is a source in either the Earth or the heavens to which the needle is attracted.
Through his experiments, Norman concluded that no such effects appear, based on
the results he should expect given the theoretical framework of his examinations.
He introduced the concept of “point respective”, and linked the orientation of the
magnetised needle to a property of the medium “[the point respective] is a certayne
point, which the touched Needle does always Respect or shew, and is found by the
declining of the Needle, to be a pricke in some one parte of a straight Line [...] which
must be imagined to proceede from the Center of the Needle, into the Globe of the
Earth, Extending, and doing Directly foorth, both wayes infinitely”. What Norman
showed was that a magnet situated in a uniform magnetic field exhibits no translation
force, being the first to suggest such a hypothesis. Norman leaves the interpretation
of his observations open, but, in line with the poets of that time, he sang the virtues
of the lodestone:
“The Loadstone is the stone,
the onely stone alone,
Deserving praise above the rest,
whose vertues are unknowne.”
An edition of Norman’s book in 1596 included also a contribution from his friend,
William Borough, “A Discourse of the Variation of the Compasse, or Magneticall
Needle”, as a hand-book for navigators, with specific practical information, mainly
concerning declination. Interestingly, Borough’s aim was to determine where the
magnetic meridian at London crossed the Atlantic zero declination line (agone), and
the position of this point. The problem of declination and longitude is discussed in
Part III. The paucity of dip measurements at that time may be due to the difficulty of
obtaining them and their lack of immediate use to navigational purposes.
Fig. 3.4 Example of dip

circle (dip compass); this
instrument designed and
made by Brunner was used at
Cape Horn in 1882–1883
during the first International
Polar Year. Courtesy:
Museum of Seismology and
Earth Magnetism,
Strasbourg (France)
3.3 Spatial and Temporal Variations
3.3.1 Spatial Variations
Mitchell (1932) analysed the journals of Christopher Columbus. He indicated that

the famous navigator may have discovered that the declination varies from place to
place. The original log entries remain however vary vague and have been extensively
edited, so the idea that Columbus was the pioneer in declination spatial variation
remains uncertain.
Even so, until the end of the 16th century, mariners continued to correct their
compasses for the declination measured at the port of departure and stick to this value
throughout all the voyage leg, until the next port. This method is satisfactory if the
charts were realised with the same hypothesis. The early charts for the Mediterranean
sea (known as “portolani”) were realised using the north indicated by the compass
3.3 Spatial and Temporal Variations 35
rather than the geographical north. Indeed, the oldest known portolan chart, the
“Carta Pisana” (Pisan chart), was made around 1285 with an impressing accuracy
and details. Much has been written about the origin and method of construction of
the portolan charts, and these matters continue to be the object of some debates
to this day. Currently, a consensus has been reached about the medieval origin of
the portolan charts and the close connection between their developments and the
appearance of the compass in the Mediterranean area.
3.3.2 Temporal Variations
In 1580, William Borough, later Comptroller of the Queen’s Navy, made declination
observations at Limehouse, near London, and concluded it to be 11◦ 41 N E. In the 3rd
edition, “Newly corrected and amended by M.W. B.” (Borough), the mean of values,
after slight arithmetical error correction, the value reads 11◦ 19 N E. At the end of
this chapter, he noted: “I dd finde the true variation of the needle or compass at
Limehouse to be about 11.d. 14 or 11.d. 13 ,” and at the end of Chap. 4: “So I conclude
the variation at Limehouse to be 111/4 from North to Eats, or South to West.” These
observations have been widely quoted, but different names were attributed to the
observer (Boroughs, Burroughs, Burrow, Burrowes). The measurements have been
also quoted with different values. A few examples: Petit (1667) noted 11◦ 11 , Gelli-
brand (1635) 11◦ 15 , Sellar (1694) reproduced the table from Borough and instead
of ”fro N to W 0.8 quoted 00◦ 28 , and in the next column instead of 11◦ 14 he
noted 11◦ 04 . Gilbert (1600) gave no source for the value of 11◦ 1/3, but Storder-
tus (1615) indicated ”Londini 11 13 gr. Or. observuvit Gilbertus”, which becomes in
Kircher (1643) ”Guglielmus Gilbertus, Londini, 11◦ 0 . Gaibar-Puertas (1953) noted
“1580, +12◦ 35 , Borough y Burrows”, indicating as source Abbadie (1890) — this
value is clearly outside of all other indicated values and shows the need of a careful
reading of ancient texts (for more details see Malin and Bullard 1981).
In 1622, Edmund Gunter, Professor of Astronomy at Gresham College found it
to be 5◦ 56.6 N E, also at Limehouse. About the same time, on the opposite side of
the Thames river, at Deptford, he measured 6◦ 15 N E. Gunter noted the difference
from Borough’s result but concluded that Borough must have made a measurement
error. In 1634, Henry Gellibrand measured the declination in the same location at
Deptford and found it to be 4◦ 05 N E. He recorded “And myself in this present year
1634 with some friends had resources to Dedpford (where Mr. Gunter had heretofore
made the same observations with those in Limehouse) and found it not much to
exceed 4 degrees.” The mean value of 4◦ 05 , represents the morning and afternoon
observations, realised with the original Gunter’s 10-inch needle and with a 12-inch
one. Fournier (1643), clearly stated the time-varying property of the declination
(“inconstance de l’aymant, en ce qu’il ne decline point tousiours de meme facon en
mesme lieu"1 .
1 Compass inconsistency, which doesn’t always behave in the same way at the same place.
Because of the care with which Gunter made his measurements, Gellibrand was
confident that the changes were real. In 1635 Gellibrand published “A Discourse
Mathematical on the Variation of the Magneticall Needle” noting that the declination
had changed by more than 7◦ in 54 years. The reality of temporal changes of the
declination was rapidly accepted in England, where Gellibrand had a high notoriety.
In other countries this idea was met with skepticism until it was confirmed by further
measurements. The observations made by Gellibrand inspired other scientists to
determine the nature of this variation on global or local scales, and to find out if it
is predictable or erratic. For example, in 1639, Henry Bond Senior indicated that
the declination would be zero in London in 1657. A French astronomer also tried
to represent the declination in Paris by a polynomial, and to predict its evolution. In
Good et al. (1819) one can read: “M. Burckardt, an ingenious French astronomer,
invented a formula to represent the magnetic declination observed at Paris; thus if t
denotes the number of years from 1663, the tangent of the declination is
0.449sin(25 7 )t + 0.0425[sin(50 13 )t]2 + 0.0267[sin(1◦ 40 26 )t]4
It follows from this formula that the eastern declination diminished from 1448,
when it was maximum of 24◦ 10 , to 1660 or 1663, when it was nothing at Paris.
Reckoning an equal period backward from 1448 gave 1233 for the earlier epoch
when there was no declination. The invention of the mariners compass is generally
dated a little before this time. According to Burckardts theorem, the maximum of the
western declination at Paris will be in the year 1831; though it will not vary more
than 20 minutes from that time to 1878. We mention these as curious results of this
astronomer’s formula; but would not, by any means, acknowledge their accuracy.”
Burckardts estimates are quite interesting, considering the time when he developed
this approach. The predicted values are indeed in a good agreement with measure-
ments in Paris at the given epoch. For example, the declination was 0◦ in 1660 and
1663. The maximum western declination was measured in 1796 (23◦ 45 by Bouvard);
over the period (1794–1831) the declination was around 22◦ (see Mandea and Le
Mouël 2016 for more details).
The discovery of temporal variation first led some to worry that magnetic obser-
vations were now rendered useless. This situation was responded to with an opposite
reaction, turning to systematic collection of magnetic data in order to identify and
understand the nature and source of these geomagnetic changes.
3.4 Early Ideas About the Sources
The first measurements were also accompanied by early attempts to understand the
causes of the Earths magnetism. Initially, in both China and Europe, the magnetic
sources were assumed to be in the heavens either the celestial poles or the Pole
star. These theories required that magnets point at (or very close to) the true north.
This hypothesis ran into difficulty when the existence of declination was accepted.
Then, natural philosophers began to advance the existence of sources situated on the
Earth, such as a rock or mountain. Many legends about magnetic mountains were
3.4 Early Ideas About the Sources 37
Fig. 3.5 The second draft of the Septentrionalium Terrarum by Gerardus Mercator, released in
1606. A zoom on the center, “Black, Very High Cliff” indicates the North pole. Courtesy: Public
domain https://commons.wikimedia.org/
propagated in time (some until the present days!). In the Ptolemy writing there is a
legend about magnetic islands (now thought to be near Borneo). This land exerts a
strong attraction on ships with nails so that the ships cannot move. Another legend
is found in One Thousand and One Nights, where a magnetic mountain could pull
all the nails out of a ship, causing the ship to fall apart and founder. This Arabian
story progressed to Europe. During the 16th century some tales featured magnetic
mountains on their maps.
Gerardus Mercator included in his famous maps a magnetic mountain or two near
the north pole. By the 1500s, not too many people had ventured up to the Arctic.
Mercator dug into some dicey sources, the most influential, being ”Inventio Fortunata
(Fortunate Discoveries) a 14th-century travelogue written by an unknown author. The
story traced the journeys of “an English minor friar of Oxford who traveled to Norway
and then pushed on further by magical arts.” This mysterious book gave Mercator
the centerpiece of his map: a massive rock located exactly at the pole, which he labels
Rupus Nigra et Altissima, or “Black, Very High Cliff” (Fig. 3.5). When subsequent
measurements resulted in two contradictory estimates for the mountain, he simply
placed two mountains on the map.
These very incipient ideas about the sources of the magnetic field, and the related
magnet variations have widely changed over the next century, with different theories,
as shown in Part III.
References
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vatorio del Ebro. Tarragona, pp 475
Gilbert W (1600) De Magnete. Peter Short, London (1st edn. in Latin)
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bis 19. Jahrhunderts im Geomagnetische Institut Potsdam. In: Jahrbuch 1962 des Adolf-Schmidt
Observatoriums für Erdmagnetismus in Niemegk. Akademie-Verlag, Berlin, pp 149–172
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C.H. Becksche Verlagsbuchhandlung, Munich
Part III
Magnetic Declination–From the Age of Sail
to the First Modern Observations
Chapter 4
Ancient Declination Maps
4.1 The First Maps Including Magnetic Information
The number of available declination measurements remains scarce, during the first
periods of existing data. An indication of the frequency of declination measurements
is proposed by Jonkers et al. (2003). Until 1700, only about 12200 measurements all
over the world are known, mainly obtained in the early era of the East India Com-
panies and the first dedicated campaigns. The next century (1700-1799) represents
the time when these companies witnessed their greatest expansion, as well as vast
increases in Atlantic and Arctic oceanic traffic, with an important rise in the number
of available declination values.
Some of the very first surviving maps include several magnetic observations. The
use of the compass has become a habit, and navigators started to systematically make
declination measurements and to record them. Until the first magnetic contour charts
produced by Edmond Halley, many examples are recorded. These early attempts to
note declination values or magnetic information on charts are due to the need for
long journeys. Some of maps have been lost; however, it appears, for example, that
in 1576 William Borough produced a map on which a few declination values are
indicated. This map, prepared for Martin Frobisher’s voyage in the search of the
North-West Passage, was not printed. One of the first published maps containing
declination values was by Wright (1599). In the second edition of his book, Wright
also constructed a chart of compass variation.
Two examples of the earliest maps including magnetic information are presented
in the following.
4.1.1 Erhard Etzlaub – 1492 Map
The very first maps including magnetic information are the road maps. Around 1500
on a map showing the route from Germany to Rome, Erhard Etzlaub included a
representation of a pocket sundial (known at that time as a compass), showing an
44 4 Ancient Declination Maps
east declination (Das ist der Rom Weg von meylen zu meylen mit puncten verzeychnet
von eyner stat zu der endern durch Deutzche lantt). The title at the top of this map
includes This is the road to Rome... and Erhard Etzlaub, Nuremberg instrument-
maker and surveyor. This map was probably published for the jubilee year of 1500,
which would take many pilgrims to Rome. Only 6 samples from these three editions
are known to have survived (e.g. the ones held by State and University Library—
Gttingen, Germanisches Nationalmuseum—Nuremberg, Bibliothque Nationale de
France—Paris, British Library London). One of them is shown here, available at the
British Library (Fig. 4.1).
4.1.2 Jean Guérard – 1631 Map
The same technique was use by others navigators. One example comes from Jean
Guérard (Ultré-Guérard and Mandea 2000) who was in charge of surveying the
French coasts and elevations of the French islands. Jean Guérard is the author of
some wonderful maps available at Bibliothque Nationale de France, Paris. He was
considered by Fournier (1643) as “l’vn des plus exacts observateurs que i’aye connu,
& qui estoit curieux d’auoir les meilleures Boussoles, & les plus exactement diuisées
qu’on puisse auoir”.1 Guérard made declination measurements during his journey
around the world. Throughout his journey in 1631 he produced a map including 17
declination values he observed in the Atlantic Ocean, and shown in Fig. 4.2.
Guérard certainly made other declination measurements, and was interested in
the problem of longitude. He noted the complexity of determining the longitude in
his book (ref): “Lon a jusques apresent curieusement cherché le moien de trouver les
longitudes du monde, mais nul ny a encore rencontré qui aye trouvé un moien certain
Bien que plusieurs se soient servis de divers moiens et aient beaucoup promis mais
sans effect qui soit bien asseuré tant francois, portugais, anglois, flames et autres.”2
4.2 From Declination Measurements to Magnetic Elements
Joo de Castro’s work was realised during his journey across the Indian Ocean (1538),
particularly the Arabian sea with the Persian Gulf and the Red Sea (1538-9 and 1541).
During the trip to India, D. Joo de Castro carried out a series of experiments, includ-
ing observations on the magnetic needle on board. On 22 December 1538, Joo de
Castro observed spatial variations of declination in the Bay of Bombay (near Baaim),
1 Translation from old French: one of the best observer I ever known who wanted to have the best
and the most precise compass.
2 Translation from old French: Until now many have searched for a way to find the longitudes in the
world, but nobody has found a reliable method. Many people used different methods and seemed
promising, but neither the French, nor the Portuguese, English or Flemish proved effective.
4.2 From Declination Measurements to Magnetic Elements 45
Fig. 4.1 The earliest printed road map of central Europe by Erhard Etzlaub. As all of his maps, this
one is “south up”. Distances between cities can be computed by dotted lines, where a one-dot-step
means one German Mile (7400 m). Courtesy: British Library, London
Fig. 4.2 Three quarters of Guérard’s map of 1631, named Carte faite en Dieppe par Jean Guérard,
1631. The entire map describes the Atlantic Ocean. The left-bottom quarter of the initial map has
been lost. The map has no rhumb system or wind roses; at 15 points from the ocean, in a small
shaded circle, are noted indications of the magnetic declination. Courtesy: Bibliothque Nationale
de France, Paris
which he attributed to the disturbing effects of underwater rock masses. This area is
situated near the large basaltic and rather strongly magnetised Deccan traps outcrop,
a geological structure confirmed four centuries later. This interesting observation
can be regarded as the first indication of the existence of a crustal magnetic field.
He also recorded values of magnetic declination in the Atlantic and Indian oceans in
the 16th century, useful for the study of terrestrial magnetism. He was able to realise
43 determinations of magnetic declination over the entire circum-Africa route. The
instrument used by him was the Bussola de Variaco, also developed by Felipe Guillen
a decade earlier in Seville (2009).
4.2.1 Cabot Map – 1544
Sebastian Cabot’s map was discovered in Germany around 1844, in the house of a
Bavarian curate and it was purchased that year by Paris Library (Dane 1883). On this
planisphere printed in 1544 (probably in Antwerp or Augsburg), the knowledge of
sailors and explorers was combined with another form of cartography, more learned
Fig. 4.3 Mappemonde by Cabot. The title of the map specifies the author and the sources: “This
extended plan figure contains the entire globe of the earth, the islands, the ports, the rivers, the
gulfs, the banks and the reefs which have been discovered to date, with their names and the names of
those who discovered them, which can also be seen in the tables of the said figure, showing all that
was known before and all that had been written by Ptolemy, provinces, regions, cities, mountains,
rivers, climates and parallels, the latitude for Europe as well as for Asia and Africa. And you should
note that the earth is located according to the variation that the compass makes with the North Star,
for the reason that you can find in the second table.” Courtesy: Bibliothque Nationale de France,
Paris
and erudite than that of handwritten portolan maps. Composed of four sheets of
parchment, the map represents the world in the form of an ellipse with grid lines in
latitude and longitude. Like nautical charts, it is also adorned with miniatures and
explanatory texts, displayed in one table along each side. In these tables there are 17
legends, in Latin and Spanish. The 17th inscription indicates that the map was made
for his sacred imperial majesty, the emperor Don Carlos. This map was drawn by
degrees of latitude and longitude, with the winds, as a sailing chart, following partly
Ptolemy and partly the time discoveries by Spanish and Portuguese sailors, as well
as by Cabot’s father and himself. An interesting element here is the note stating that
it is possible to sail using this sea-chart, and the one regarding the variation of the
needle (Fig. 4.3).
Cabots considerations on magnetic variation and its relation to longitude are
quoted by several contemporaries. It appears that in 1522 Cabot described to Con-
tarini, an Italian diplomat and cardinal, a method of “ascertaining by the compass the
distance between two places from east to west”. Contarini was in Spain when Magel-
lan’s expedition returned in 1522, bringing aboard a cargo of spices from the east as
well as scientific curiosities. Although the sailors had carefully recorded every day
of the three-year journey since they had left Seville, the ship’s log was one day earlier
than the actual date when they returned to Seville. Contarini was the first European to
give a correct explanation of this phenomenon. More than once did Cabot emphasise
the significance of marking the line of no variation as a meridian. On his map of 1544
he also indicated the position of the line connecting points where the declination is
zero, and hence the compass needle indicates the true north. Cabot proposed a second
method for finding the longitude, which was described by Alonso de Santa Cruz. This
method involves the use of the declination of the Sun, observed with the quadrant. It
seems that Alonso de Santa Cruz prepared a chart on which meridians were drawn at
intervals of 15◦ with declination values noted on each meridian; however, no copies
of this chart have ever been found (Helmann 1909).
4.2.2 Gerardus Mercator – 1569 Map
One of the best known global map of the world was produced by Gerardus Merca-
tor, in 1569 Nova et Aucta Orbis Terrae Descriptio ad Usum Navigantium Emendate
Accommodata.3 The title indicates the author’s wish to present contemporary knowl-
edge of the geography of the world as well as a useful information for sailors. The
map was based on his own previous works and the work of other cartographers.
The framed map legends (or cartouches) cover a wide variety of topics, one of them
being dedicated to declination. Indeed, in legend 5, Mercator argued that the prime
meridian should be identified with that on which the magnetic declination is zero,
namely the meridian through the Cape Verde islands, or alternatively the one through
the island of Corvo in the Azores. He further claimed that he has used information
on the geographical variation of declination to calculate the position of the (single)
magnetic pole corresponding to the two possible prime meridians. Indeed, on the map
presented in Fig. 4.4, on the Legend 5 one can read: Legend 5 De longitudinum geo-
graphicarum initio et polo. Testatur Franciscus Diepanus peritissimus navarchus
volubiles libellas magnetis virtute infectas recta mundi polum respicere in insulis
C. Viridis, Salis, Bonavista, et Maio, cui proxime astipulantur qui in Tercera aut S.
Maria (insulae sunt inter Acores) id fieri dicunt, pauci in earundem occidentalissima
Corvi nomine id contingere opinantur. Quia vero locorum longitudines a communi
magnetis et mundi meridiano justis de causis initium sumere opportet plurimum tes-
timonium secutus primum meridianum per dictas C. Viridis insulas protraxi, et quum
alibi plus minusque a polo deviante magnete polum aliquem peculiarem esse oporteat
quo magnetes ex omni mundi parte respiciant cum hoc quo assignavi loco existere
adhibita declinatione magnetis Ratisbonae observata didici. Supputavi autem ejus
poli situm etiam respectu insulae Corvi, ut juxta extremos primi meridiani positus
3Translation from Renaissance Latin: New and more complete representation of the terrestrial
globe properly adapted for use in navigation.
Fig. 4.4 The World map by Mercator is a large planisphere, printed in eighteen separate sheets.
Courtesy: Bibliothque Nationale de France, Paris
extremi etiam termini, intra quos polum hunc inveniri necesse est, conspicui fierent,
donec certius aliquid naucleorum observatio attulerit.4
Another minor text, situated on the bottom right side of sheet 1 of this map
specifically refers to the magnetic pole: Polus magnetis. Hunc altero fine tabulae in
sua latitudine repetitum vides, quemadmodum et reliquas descriptiones extremitates,
quae hoc tabulae latus finiunt, quod ideo factum est ut utriusque termini ad alterum
continuato clarius oculis subjecta esset.5
4 Translation from Renaissance Latin: On the origin of the geographical longitudes and on the
magnetic pole. Francis of Dieppe, a skilful shipmaster, asserts that movable balances, after being
infected with the virtue of a magnet, point directly to the Earth’s pole in the Isles of Cape Verde:
Sal, Bonavista and Maio. This is closely supported by those who state that this occurs at Terceira
or S. Maria (which are isles of the Azores); some believe that this is the case at the most westerly
of these islands which is called Corvo. Now, since it is necessary that longitudes of places should,
for good reasons, have as origin the meridian which is common to the magnet and the World, in
accordance with a great number of testimonies I have drawn the prime meridian through the said
Isles of Cape Verde; and as the magnet deviates elsewhere more or less from the pole, there must be
a special pole towards which magnets turn in all parts of the world, therefore I have ascertained that
this is in reality at the spot where I have placed it by taking into account the magnetic declination
observed at Ratisbon. But I have likewise calculated the position of this pole with reference to the
Isle of Corvo in order that note may be taken of the extreme positions between which, according
to the extreme positions of the prime meridian, this pole must lie until the observations made by
seamen have provided more certain information.
5 Translation from Renaissance Latin: Magnetic Pole. Ye see it repeated at the other end of the chart
in the proper latitude as also the other extremities of the representation which terminate at this side
4.3 From One to Two Magnetic Poles
4.3.1 Guillaume Le Nautonier – 1603 Map
As indicated previously, Le Nautonier considered the Canary meridian as the geo-

graphic meridian 0◦ because the declination was zero and tilted by 22◦ 30 along
this meridian, towards the north. He was able to imagine a homogeneous magnetic
sphere with meridians and parallels analogous to meridians and geographic paral-
lels. In Fig. 4.5, it is clear that the south magnetic pole is thus on the 0◦ meridian, a
little below the Antarctic polar circle, while the north magnetic pole is on the 180◦
meridian (therefore both right and left) in a similar position. From the configuration
that the magnetic meridians and parallels take in the projection after such a tilting,
the magnetic equator becomes a perfect sinusoid whose maximum is on the meridian
0◦ , a little below the Tropic of Cancer. Even more remarkably are the loci of max-
ima of declination (the 90◦ magnetic meridians, whose shapes in any projection are
quickly recalculated with a computer, but which must have required astute graphical
constructions from Le Nautonier). These two lines, which intersect the geographic
equator at the same points as the magnetic equator and which join the north and south
magnetic poles on both sides, represent, according to Le Nautonier, the geometric
place where the declination reaches a maximum value, which is situated west on a
geographic parallel.
We now know that the positions of the magnetic poles, whether surface poles or
those of the dipole representing the main part of the geomagnetic field, were far from
those where Le Nautonier placed the poles of his “dipole”; from this point of view,
the lack of measurements at that time in the Canadian Far North, the Pacific and the
Antarctic continent was fatal. The fact remains that his dipole model approximated a
number of declination measurements and that it was far superior to the concept of a
coincidence between the axis of the Earth’s magnetic field and the axis of rotation by
Gilbert. However, the charts of Edmond Halley, developed about one century later,
are the first comprehensive magnetic declination maps to be published.
4.4 The Earliest Magnetic Charts
4.4.1 Edmond Halley – 1700 Map
Edmond Halley’s relevance for the field of geomagnetism is clearly linked to his
interest and use of cartography on the one hand and to improving the practice of
navigation on the other hand. Halley was also caught up in the major problem of that
time: finding the longitude at sea. He was appointed to the Board of Longitude, a
of the chart; this was done in order that the continuity of each of the two ends with the other shall
more clearly be set before your eyes.
4.4 The Earliest Magnetic Charts 51
Fig. 4.5 Le Nautoniers map, with the first illustration of the magnetic equator (marked “EQUATOR
MAGNETIS”) and the two magnetic poles (marked “POLVS MAGNETIS”). The map is centered
on the geographic meridian which contains the South Magnetic pole, located close to the Antartic
circle. The North Magnetic pole is at the edge of the map, close to the Arctic circle. (Original title:
“Description concise de l’orbe de la Terre partir des tables des geographes les plus experts de
l’orbe tout entier, et prise d’observations trs nouvelles.” Courtesy: St Genevieve Library, Paris
British government body formed in 1714 to administer a scheme of prizes to bestow

20000 pounds upon the successful inventor of a method to determine the longitude at
sea. The importance of determining the longitude at sea is also considered in France,
where, the Bureau des Longitudes was founded in 1795, being commissioned with
the improvement of nautical navigation, standardisation of time-keeping, geodesy
and astronomical observation, activities which are continuously carried on. Clearly,
the 18th century focused on longitude problem.
Halley realised how difficult it is to understand the Earth’s magnetic field varia-
tions: “ow although the great utility that a perfect Knowledge of the Theory of the
Magnetical Direction would afford to Mankind in general, and especially to those
concern’d in Sea Affairs, seems as sufficient incitement to all Philosophical and
Mathematical Heads, to take under serious Consideration the several Phnomena,
and to endeavour to reconcile them by some general Rule: Yet so it is; that almost all
the Authors, from whom a Discourse of this kind ought to have been expected, pass by
in silence the Difficulties they here Encounter...” (Halley 1683). He analysed previ-
ous theories, and brought arguments to refute them. Gilbert’s irregularity hypothesis
was refuted based on different observations, as the one off the Brazil coast, where
the needle is not attracted by land, but turns to an opposite direction. Le Nautonier’s
idea, that the magnetic field originates from a tilted dipole with respect to the Earth’s
rotation axis, was also refuted. These new measurements indicated that on a given
meridian the declination would be eastern or western, but not both.
Halley discussed the shortcomings of previous theories and advanced his own, by
considering that the Earth’s interior behaves as a great magnet, with four poles. This
new idea was somehow influenced by Peter Perkins’ work (Clark 2000). In the same
paragraph Halley also underlined the importance of gathering new data: “Now to
propose something that may answer the several appearances, and introduce nothing
strange in Philosophy, after a great many close Thoughts, I can come to no other
Conclusion than that, The whole Globe of the Earth is one great Magnet, having
four Magnetical Poles, or Points of Attraction, near each Pole of the Equator. Two;
and that, in those parts of the World which lie near adjacent to any one of those
Magnetical Poles, the Needle is govern’d thereby, the nearest Pole being always
predominant over the more remote. The parts of the Earth wherein these Magnetical
Poles lie, cannot as yet be exactly determin’d for want of sufficient Data to proceed
Geometrically...”.
Halley clearly indicated the need for new observations, and he set up expeditions
to sail around the oceans and measure declination. The purpose of Halley’s first two
voyages was to test his theories on the variations of the magnetic field; during the
third voyage he investigated tidal phenomena. These voyages received royal approval,
support from the Navy, and sponsorship from the Royal Society. In October 1698, a
three masted ship, Paramore captained by Halley set sail from Deptford, England, on
the first leg of the first voyage (1698–1699) ever commissioned for strictly scientific
purposes. The Admiralty’s instructions to Halley dated 15 October 1698 were clearly
turned to the magnetic measurements: Whereas his Maty. has been pleased to lend
his Pink the Paramour for your proceeding with her on an Expedition, to improve
the knowledge of the Longitude and variations of the Compasse, which Shipp is now
completely Mand, Stored and Victualled at his Mats. Charge for the said Expedition
... . Halley’s departure on the first voyage was delayed because of his employment by
Newton and by Tsar Peter’s desire to sail in the newly-commissioned Paramore. If
the first voyage had been confined to the North Atlantic, the second voyage (1699–
1700) was an eminently successful undertaking in which the Paramore made a wide
sweep through the Atlantic reaching 52◦ 24 S latitude. Halley’s journal along with
the recording of the voyages have been edited by Thrower (1981). These journals are
navigation documents, but provide additional information about these expeditions.
The expedition log recorded the declination measurements with, probably, an
azimuth compass. This typical 17th century azimuth compass allowed the measure-
ment of the magnetic azimuth, the angle of the arc on the horizon between the
direction of the Sun or some other celestial object and the magnetic north. Nearly
all magnetic declination observations were made by observing the Suns magnetic
amplitude, the angular distance when on the horizon at sunrise or sunset. The evening
amplitude was combined with the amplitude of the following morning and the decli-
nation estimated the difference between the two amplitudes as one-half, and applied
it to the geographical position at midnight. If the morning and evening amplitudes
were observed on the same day, then half the difference was taken as the magnetic
declination and applied to the position at noon. If the weather conditions were not
favorable (cloudy or foggy), the declination was obtained by observing the azimuth
of the Sun or Moon, when at a low altitude above the horizon.
Halley made many observations which enabled him to produce the first isogo-
nic map–map showing curves, each of them indicating the same declination value
(Fig. 4.6). This is also considered as the earliest isoline map of any phenomenon;
however, there is some debate about this (Barraclough 2000). Other cartographers
may have discussed and used the idea of isolines, however it was Halley who pub-
lished the first printed map with this construction. The map features decorative car-
touches, some in a rococo style with mythological figures representing astronomy
(with armillary sphere and telescope), navigation (with ship and compass), and math-
ematics (with triangle and dividers). A dedication to King William III was included
in later publications of the first map in the blank cartouche over Africa. The Paramore
route is marked by a dashed curve with superimposed ornamental ships. The upper
Atlantic Ocean is named Western Ocean while the lower Atlantic Ocean is referred
to as the Southern Ocean. Represented by a double curve on the map, the curve
of no variation indicates when the reading of the compass stands true (namely it
indicates the geographic north). The curves of no variation are known today as the
agonic curves. The map consists of 60 curves of equal magnetic variations: the ago-
nic curve, the curve of 1◦ west variation, 25 curves of east variation, 24 curves of
west variation in the upper Atlantic Ocean, and 9 curves of west variation in the
lower Atlantic Ocean. Halley called the lines of variation “curve lines”, however,
they became known as Halleyan or Halleian lines, until the modern use of the term
“isogones”. Halley did not reveal how he constructed the map, and the employed
method remains unknown. Murray (2012) analysed the construction procedure by
applying the mathematical tools available at the time, namely arithmetical averages
and Isaac Newtons method of divided difference for fitting a polynomial curve to
data. To enable his map construction, a method was suggested whereby Halley could
have created new data to supply additional information where insufficient data were
collected.
This first map formed the basis for the next editions. Halley had been aware that
his map would become inaccurate because of the secular variation. However, the map
was revised only some four decades after, in 1745 by William Mountaine and James
Dodson. A second revision was produced in 1756, and a revision of that edition
produced by the French Royal Hydrographer, Jacques-Nicolas Bellin in 1765. None
of the editions published throughout the 18th century covered the whole of the Pacific
Ocean, and the contours do not extend over land areas (Barraclough 2000).
Fig. 4.6 Halley’s original map of magnetic declination over the Atlantic Ocean. The blank cartouche
over Africa later contained a dedication to King William III. This might be similar to the proof copy
exhibited to the Royal Society in October 1700. Courtesy: Royal Geographical Society, London
4.4.2 Charts and Atlases Before the Vector Field

Measurements
Charts
The 18th century is characterised by a wealth of new ideas, knowledge, exploration
and rapidly growing technology, and over this time-span Halley’s declination map and
Fig. 4.7 Bowen’s map of magnetic declination isogons in 1744, including dates of European
discoveries, realised in 1747. Courtesy: David Rumsey Map Collection
its different editions were continuously improved by considering the new available
measurements. A few of these earlier maps are presented here.
In 1752, Emanuel Bowen produced a world declination map, with contours cov-
ering a larger part of the Pacific Ocean, illustrated as dotted curves because “the
Variation could not be ascertain’d in those parts ... with so much accuracy as the
rest”. This chart is based on a large number of surveys, together with information
extracted from the best existing maps and charts, and regulated by astronomical
observations. The map describes lines that show the movement of the magnetic nee-
dle, according to observations made by several experienced navigators around the
year 1744 (Fig. 4.7). It also includes notes on the lines of magnetic declination, and
dates of European discoveries.
A nice chart was produced by Nicolaus Friederich Sauerbrey in 1744. The map
shows the isogons over two hemispheres. Deviations of the compass needle from
the “True North” are shown, illustrated with some explanations in Latin. Leonhard
Euler included the map in the “Geographischer Atlas bestehend in 44 Land-Charten”
published for the Prussian Royal Academy of Sciences and Literature in Berlin
between 1753 and 1760 (Fig. 4.8).
Fig. 4.8 Sauerbrey’s map of of magnetic declination isogons in 1744. TABULA GEOGRAPHICA
UTRIUSQUE HEMISPHAERII TERRESTRIS EXHIBENS DECLINATIONEM ACUS MAGNETI-
CAE. (Double hemisphere world map, showing the deviation of the compass needle from the true
north, with three columns of explanatory text in Latin below).This engraved world map by Leon-
hard Euler from his school atlas including dates of European discoveries. Courtesy: Philographikon
Gallery (Germany)
At that time, Johan Carl Wilcke designed the first chart demonstrating the magnetic
inclination changes over the globe (Fig. 4.9). However, the first attempt, dated around
1720 was realised by William Whiston who prepared the first inclination chart for
the south-eastern region of England and the coast of Normandy. The ancient hope,
to provide a better way to determine longitude for this area, here by considering the
inclination measurements, was not yet possible.
Thomas Yeats contributed to making the first British chart showing isogonic
curves over all the oceans, between 60◦ N and 60◦ S, in 1817. The declination contours
still do not cover the lands. The chart, including magnetic equators and magnetic
meridians, can be considered the first “official” declination map. These activities
continued over centuries, at national and global scales, until present days.
Fig. 4.9 Wilcke’s first global map of magnetic inclination published in 1768. Courtesy: National
Library of Sweden
Atlases
The earliest geomagnetic atlases had been printed by the end of 18th century (Reich
and Roussanova 2015). Indeed, the first one was published in London in 1776; its
author was the mathematician, cartographer, and astronomer Samuel Dunn, whose
aim was to improve navigation especially to support the trading of England with
the East Indies. The American John Churchman, however, was mainly a surveyor.
He was also interested in solving the problem of finding longitude at sea. He pro-
posed a method theoretically unsound and somehow in line with Le Nautonier’s. He
considered that the magnetic poles could be located precisely, and that they rotate
at a constant rate around the geographic poles. A meridian linking those poles has
the same magnetic variation at every point, so a navigator would need to know the
latitude and the local magnetic variation of the compass to ascertain the longitude.
Churchman’s interest in magnetic measurements led him to publish the “Magnetic
Atlas” (1790) accompanied by an explanatory pamphlet. Three further editions were
issued (1794, in London, 1800 in New York, and 1804 in London), the first one being
shown in Fig. 4.10.
Fig. 4.10 Churchman’s map of the Northern Hemisphere with a dedication to George Washington
(part of “The magnetic atlas, or variation charts of the whole terraqueous glove: comprising a system
of the variation & dip of the needle, by which the observations being truly made, the longitude may
be ascertained”). Courtesy: American Philosophical Society, London
The idea of two magnetic poles in the north and two in the south was also supported
by Christopher Hansteen, whose atlas was published in 1819.
These incipient efforts in providing a full picture of the magnetic field culminate
with Gauss and Webers Atlas which is undoubtedly regarded as the most famous and
a very recent effort to produce an Atlas of the Earth’s magnetic field as a unified set
of physical, geographic, thematic, and historical information from 1500 to 2010 (see
Part IV).
References 59
References
Barraclough D (2000) Four hundred years of geomagnetic field charting and modelling. In: Schroder
W (ed) Geomagnetism. Research past and present, IAGA. IAGA, Bremen-Roennebeck, pp 93–
111
Clark TDG (2000) Edmond Halley’s voyages in the paramore and the first isogonic chart of the
Earth’s magnetic field. In: Schroder W (ed) Geomagnetism. Research past and present, IAGA.
IAGA, Bremen-Roennebeck, pp 61–71
Dane C (1883) The mappemonde of sebastian cabot. Science 1(3):62–65
Halley E (1683) A theory of the variation of the magnetical compass. Philos Trans R Soc Lond Ser
I 13:208–221
Helmann G (1909) Magnetische kartographie in historisch-kritischer darstellung. Abh. Kön.
Preussischen met. Inst. 3(3):1–61
Jonkers ART, Jackson A, Murray A (2003) Four centuries of geomagnetic data from historical
records. Rev Geophys 41(2). https://doi.org/10.1029/2002RG000115
Murray LL (2012) The construction of edmond halley’s 1701 map of magnetic declination. The
University of Western Ontario
Rangel AJR (2009) O magnetismo terrestre no roteiro de lisboa a goa: as experiências de d. joo de
castro. Collections Faculdade de Letras, Lisboa
Reich K, Roussanova E (2015) Gauss’ and Weber’s “Atlas of Geomagnetism” (1840) was not the
first: the history of the geomagnetic atlases. In: Freeden ST, Nashed WM (eds) Geomagnetism.
Research past and present, IAGA. Handbook of Geomathematics, Berlin
Thrower NJW (1981) The three voyages of Edmond Halley in the Paramore 1698–1701. The
Hakluyt Society, London
Ultré-Guérard P, Mandea M (2000) Declination and longitude in france in the early 17th century. In:
Schroder W (ed) Geomagnetism. Research past and present, IAGA. IAGA, Bremen-Roennebeck,
pp 81–92
Wright E (1599) Certaine errors in navigation, arising either of the ordinarie erroneous making or
vsing of the sea chart, compasse, crosse staffe, and tables of declination of the sunne, and fixed
starres detected and corrected. Agas, London
Part IV
Magnetic Declination from the First
Continuous Observations to the Satellite
Era
Chapter 5
Long-Series of Declination Observations
In the quest to understand the mechanisms underlying the generation of the Earth’s
magnetic field, it is desirable to gather information about its evolution on longer time
spans. Over the last decades, assembling long series of magnetic declination and
inclination measurements has been the aim of many efforts. However, there are no
such long series of field intensity which are necessary to complete the description
of the vector field. This is inevitable, since the first observation of the magnetic field
intensity, in absolute values, was done by Carl Friedrich Gauss, in 1832.
Measurements of the two field directions, declination and inclination, date back
further than full vector observations. Frequent measurements have been taken par-
ticularly from shipboard for navigational purposes from the late 16th century on,
and Jonkers et al. (2003) compiled a large global set of such data. Their database
also contains a few land measurements prior to the beginning of systematic obser-
vations. However, individual time series of declination and sometimes inclination
cover longer periods. Attempts to collect these measurements have been noted since
the 19th century. An interesting comparison between the declination evolution in
Paris and London on the one hand, and for St. Helene and Cap of the Good Hope on
the other hand, were published in 1867 by Raulin (1867). The curves for Paris and
London have a similar behavior, and the dates of zero and maximum values of decli-
nation are indicated (Fig. 5.1). These specific values, and the sinusoidal behaviour of
declination series led the author to consider two declination cycles, each of them of
some 600 years. This hypothesis and the null declination value in 1664 allowed the
author to indicate other dates for zero declination in Paris: 1064 and 1364 prior to the
considered period, and 1964 and 2264, after that. Forecasting the declination evolu-
tion by this empirical method is associated with large errors, estimated at about half
a century with respect to the previous measured null declination value (see below).

64 5 Long-Series of Declination Observations
Fig. 5.1 Comparison of Paris and London (bottom panel) and St.Helene and Cap (upper panel) of
declination and inclination series. After Raulin (1867)
Over the last decades, efforts have been made to compile declination and inclina-
tion series for some specific locations, such as London, Paris, Munich, to name only
a few, which are presented in the following section.
It is important to stress out that these series of data are gathered over a small
area around the reference point, as, for some centuries, the measurements have been
realised in various places. The measurements done over centuries need to be adjusted
to the present-day magnetic observatory. The main difficulty in estimating the site
differences, particularly between the earlier sites, arises from the lack of simultaneous
measurements. If this is the case, it is possible to use the average difference of as
many nearly simultaneous observations as possible. If there is a long gap between
the end of measurements at one site and the beginning of measurements at a new site,
the trend of the secular variation at both sites can be used. Indeed, it is practically
useless to measure present-day differences between historical sites, because of the
lack of knowledge of the exact historical observing locations and because sites have
often been magnetically polluted by anthropogenetic effects. In adjusting historical
measurements from a number of different sites to the site of a present-day observatory
it is necessary to compute differences gradually, using the successive sites, and an
example is provided for the London series.
These series provide a unique indication of the secular variation over a time
interval between recent magnetic observatories and archaeomagnetic measurements.
It happens also that in Western Europe, the changes in the declination series have
been major, triggering a considerable interest in the geodynamo theory and the origin
of the magnetic field.
For all series, some common issues need to be considered, starting with the sources
of data and methods of observations, with site differences and data corrections in
order to get unique series. Each aspect is addressed mainly in relation to the unique-
ness of a given series, an event or a fact.
5.1 London Series 65
5.1 London Series
The London series, published by Malin and Bullard (1981), represents the first huge
effort to gather declination and inclination measurements spanning over more than
four centuries, though only for a few places, and with considerable uncertainty. What-
ever the shortcomings of the series, it does constitute a unique catalogue, sometimes
with more information than the date and value of measurement. Many observations
have associated names, sometimes references, which can afterwards be tracked to
their original sources, often yielding additional notes.
The authors attempted to catalogue all direct measurements of declination and
inclination (dip) in London area, paying a particular attention to completeness in
the earlier years, and tracing the data to their original source whenever possible.
Details are given for an assessment of the measurements’ reliability and accuracy.
The initially published London series covers the period 1570–1975; it has been
updated with data available after 1975 or with other ancient data, found after the
time of publication.
The difficulty in getting ancient measurements is obvious. Further search depends
on the interest in the Earth’s magnetic field, and readings of the 16th and 17th century
literature of science and navigation. But not only! A look at St Paul’s cathedral in
London makes it possible to discover that the alignment of the modern cathedral (built
by Christopher Wren between 1675–1710, after the medieval one had been burnt
down in the Great Fire of 1666) is picked out in grey Purbeck Marble. The direction
is toward the sunrise on the Easter Sunday of the year in which the foundations were
laid, April 14th, 1675, at approximately 75◦ , a full 15◦ north of true geographic east.
The alignment of the medieval cathedral, the fourth on the site and far from the first
one, actually picked out in black and white, is 10◦ closer to the true geographic east,
at approximately 85◦ , and may have been toward medieval magnetic east, which may
in turn have just happened to more or less coincide with modern magnetic east! This
is, indeed, an unusual source of data.
As for the other places, the data have been observed at something like 50 locations
for London, situated in a circle with a radius of some 36 km. For some sites, for
example Greenwich and Kew, site differences may be greatly larger than the errors
in measurements. The site differences are due to the gradient of the regional and local
magnetic anomalies, either natural or artificial. The effects of natural anomalies are
unlikely to change across a few centuries, but the regional and artificial anomalies
are liable to change in time. The gradients can be obtained when observations are
made at about the same time over a period of time. When these data are not available,
different schemes can be applied (Malin and Bullard 1981). To summarise the site
differences, the data prior to 1841 have been adjusted to Greenwich, obtaining then a
declination series for the time span 1540–1925 for a single location. The relocations
from Greenwich observatory (1841–1925) to Abinger observatory (1925–1957) and
then to Hartland (1957 to present day) were necessary as electrification of the railways
progressed, making the magnetic measurements in London region more and more
inaccurate.
Fig. 5.2 London declination series: annual means of declination corrected and adjusted to the
location of the Greenwich observatory. After Malin and Bullard (1981)
The London series, as published by Malin and Bullard (1981) is shown in Fig. 5.2.
This figure shows that over the past few hundred years the declination has been
negative. It is important to note that in 2019, for the first time in some 360 years, the
compass needle pointed directly to the “True North” at Greenwich.
5.2 Paris Series
The observations in and around Paris are more systematic and more numerous than
those for London. Currently, the first magnetic declination value for the Paris area
dates as early as the 16th century, with the measurement performed by Künstler
Bellarmatus in 1541, giving a value of the declination of 7◦ E. Since that epoch
until the official date of the establishment of the Académie des Sciences in 1635
by Cardinal Richelieu, some 20 declination measurements have been mined for the
Paris area. In 1667, the Académie des Sciences decided to build an astronomical
observatory in Paris and to ensure a continuity for the declination measurements.
Before the beginning of construction of the building, a first measurement was made
on 21st June 1667, using a 5-inch needle. Subsequent measurements were performed
from 1667 onwards, sometimes continued as a family tradition (La Hire, Cassini,
Maraldi–fathers and sons). There are fewer measurements of inclination than of
declination at the Paris Observatory, mainly owing to its late discovery and less
interest for navigation.
5.2 Paris Series 67
Interestingly, all declination measurements were made in a small area around Paris
(Issy-les-Moulineaux, Montsouris et Montmorency). They have been continued at
the French magnetic observatories (Saint-Maur, Val-Joyeux, and Chambon-la-Forêt),
so site differences to be applied is less complicated than for the London series. For
the Paris series, another unique characteristics needs to be pointed out. This is the
measurement time. Of course, for the very ancient measurements only the year of
observations is known. Over time, more and more information have been available,
with indication about the month, the day and the hour, and even the minute or second
(for very recent times in modern magnetic observatories).
The dates for the first magnetic measurements are expressed in the Julian calendar.
The reason why the Julian calendar had to be replaced was the formula used to
calculate the leap years, producing a leap year every four years. In 1582, Pope
Gregory XIII, decreed that 10 days be dropped when switching to the Gregorian
calendar. If France, Italy, Poland, Portugal, Spain adopted the new calendar in 1582,
other countries made the change later, so more days had to be omitted. Germany
(Prussia) changed the calendar in 1610, Germany (Protestant areas) in 1700, still
needed to omit 10 days, but Bulgaria, Russia, Greece and Turkey made the change
during the 20th century, with the need to omit 13 days. The change from the Julian
to the Gregorian calendar slightly affects the time changes for the Paris data. More
important for this series is to apply the “Republican Calendar” changes. This calendar
was first used on November, 26, 1793, and was discontinued on December, 31, 1805,
when the Gregorian calendar was reinstated. The French Republican calendar came
about because the government wanted to distance itself from anything associated with
the “Ancien régime” and religion. Each of the 12 months of this calendar contained
three “décades” (instead of weeks) of 10 days each; at the end of the year, five (six
in leap years) supplementary days were grouped. Each day was then divided into ten
hours, each hour into 100 decimal minutes, and each decimal minute into 100 decimal
seconds. Converting the time to the Gregorian calendar is done by considering the
decimal system and that is why, for example, the year I (1) is 22 September 1792
and so on, until year X I V (14) which is 23rd September 1805.
More details about the observations of declination and inclination in the Paris
region are given in Alexandrescu et al. (1996). The reader can also find detailed
information about the data sources, known observers, published and unpublished
measurements. Instruments and methods used to measure the declination in the five
places around Paris are also described. An assessment of different errors is also pre-
sented: errors linked directly to the measurements, errors due to crustal and anthro-
pogenic contributions, errors due to external field contributions, and instruments
and technique errors. The annual means of declination (1541–2020), adjusted to the
Chambon-la-Forêt observatory are presented in Fig. 5.3.
Important from an historical point of view are two epochs, separated by some 350
years, when declination reaches a null-value. The first one around 1663 (considering
the mean of measurements in Paris and that in Issy-les-Moulineaux) and the sec-
Fig. 5.3 Paris declination series: annual means of declination corrected and adjusted to nowadays
location of the French Chambon-la-Forêt observatory. After Mandea and Le Mouël (2016); see also
Alexandrescu et al. (1996)
ond one in October–November 2013 (Mandea and Le Mouël 2016). The maximum
western declination was measured on May, 17, 1796 (23◦ 45 by Bouvard, with a
Cassini compass); at the time of the French revolution the declination was around
22◦ , (1794–1831), thereafter changing the trend.
5.3 Munich Series
The Munich declination series is based on historical declination values from southern
Germany, gathered and analysed by Korte et al. (2009).
The Munich series is interesting due to the variety of data sources. Indeed, the
historical declination data are also obtained from sundials, compass roses printed
on old maps (Mandea and Korte 2007), measurements used for mining activities,
orientations of churches, and from measurements carried out at monasteries. Some
more details are provided here for the two unique sources, the historical sundials and
the efforts done in some monasteries.
Catalogues describing collections of historical sundials exist for the two southern
German cities Nuremberg and Augsburg, centers of sundial manufacturing from the
15th to 18th century. For many of the ancient sundials an indication about the place
and the epoch when they were made is included in these catalogues. Interestingly,
the compilation of declination values indicates that instruments manufactured by one
5.3 Munich Series 69
person at the same location specify a different deviation value for different years.
One could expect the manufacturer to adopt one single declination value and to mark
it on all produced instruments. Obviously, this is not the case and the declination
was determined separately for individual instruments. Maybe this is the very first
indication about the temporal changes in declination, so the secular variation of the
magnetic field.
The importance of measurements carried out at monasteries is notable for the 18th
and 19th centuries, when measurements of declination were carried out at several
places in southern Germany and Austria by monks (see Korte et al. (2009)). At
Hohenpeissenberg, geomagnetic declination measurements were initiated together
with meteorological measurements in 1781 by the Societas Meteorologica Palatina,
the Academy of the Palatinate. Measurements of declination were conducted three
times a day by monks and local priests until 1839, and then it makes it possible to
obtain annual means. Results from magnetic observations carried out at monasteries
at Augsburg and Kremsmünster were published in a series of yearbooks. The time
series for Kremsmünster consists of single data points between 1740 and 1790. From
1815 onward, the values are means of several measurements, and from 1840 onward,
proper annual means of regular daily observations.
For the historical measurements that have been discovered, the accuracy of dec-
lination values determined from sundials and old compasses from the 15 to 19th
century are larger than 1◦ . Measurements in mines and those made by monks from
the 17 to 19th century show an accuracy better than 1◦ . Church orientations, however,
are no reliable source of historical declination.
The compiled data have been adjusted to the location of Munich together with
available archaeomagnetic and previously published historical data. A smooth decli-
nation curve has been fit to the data, extending the existing observatory record from
Fig. 5.4 Munich declination series: annual means of declination corrected and adjusted to Munich
observatory location. After Korte et al. (2009)
backward to 1400 (Fig. 5.4). The comparison to declination curves for Paris and Lon-
don shows a broadly uniform European declination variation, but with a significant
spatial gradient change in the early 18th century.
References
Alexandrescu M, Courtillot V, Le Mouël JL (1996) Geomagnetic field direction in Paris since the
mid-sixteenth century. Phys Earth Planet Inter 98:321–360
Korte M, Mandea M, Matzka J (2009) A historical declination curve for Munich from different data
sources 174:161–172
Malin SRC, Bullard E (1981) The direction of the Earth’s magnetic field at London, 1570–1975.
Philos Trans R Soc Lond 299:357–423
Mandea M, Korte M (2007) Ancient sundials and maps reveal historical declination values. EOS
Trans 88(31):310–311
Mandea M, Le Mouël JL (2016) After some 350 years-zero declination again in Paris. History of
Geo- and Space Sciences
Raulin V (1867) Quelques vues générales sur les variations séculaires du magnétisme terrestre
(Bordeaux : impr. de F. Degréteau, Extrait des “Actes de la Société linnéenne de Bordeaux”, T.
XXVI, 1867, 1867), p 92
Chapter 6
Geomagnetic Vector Field: From Ground
to Satellite Measurements
6.1 The First Geomagnetic Observatories
The three presented series for magnetic declination clearly point out that declination
measurements can be put together over the last nearly five centuries, for very few
locations around the world. This is not the same for the inclination series, and even
less so for the full magnetic field vector, measured only since the 19th century. Dedi-
cated instruments for measuring declination and inclination have been continuously
improved. In the first part of 19th century, in Paris, one famous magnetic instrument
maker was Henri-Prudence Gambey. In 1824 he received the Golden medal at the
International Exhibition for his precise declination compass. As a member of “Bureau
des Longitudes”, he also developed the inclination compass (boussole d’inclinaison
de Gambey”). These two instruments can be seen at the Ecole polytechnique, Paris
and are illustrated in Figs. 6.1 and 6.2, respectively.
On May, 26, 1832, for the very first time, the horizontal component of the Earth’s
magnetic field was measured. This was indeed an absolute measurement, made in
Göttingen. A value of 17820 nT was measured for this field component, in this place
and at this date. This estimation was provided by Carl Friedrich Gauss, a great per-
sonality in geosciences. The measurement required an apparatus consisting of two
bar magnets, one single-filament suspension in which either magnet can be fitted, a
ruler, a clock and two weights. The measurement consists in producing a vibration
experiment in which the magnet suspended horizontally, oscillates either side of the
magnetic north with a period related to the magnet moment of inertia and its mag-
netic moment. Knowing the moment of inertia, it is possible to compute the product
between the horizontal field component and the moment of inertia. The second part
is the deflection experiment in which the ratio between the magnetic moment and the
horizontal field component is determined by suspending another magnet and noting
its angular deflection from the magnetic north when the previous magnet is placed
at a known distance to the east or west. This requires to know how the magnetic
intensity due to a bar magnet falls off with distance. Gauss was the first to show that

72 6 Geomagnetic Vector Field: From Ground to Satellite Measurements
Fig. 6.1 Declination

compass by Gambey.
Courtesy: Ecole
Polytechnique, Paris
Fig. 6.2 Inclination

compass by Gambey.
Courtesy: Ecole
Polytechnique, Paris
6.1 The First Geomagnetic Observatories 73
the intensity due to a dipole depends on the inverse cube of the distance. From a
knowledge of the defined product and ratio, the horizontal field component can be
deduced. Over time, this method was slightly modified and continued to be regarded
as the standard way of measuring the horizontal component at magnetic observatories
and during the geomagnetic surveys, until the 1920s. Nowadays, absolute magnetic
intensity measurements are usually made with an absolute magnetometer.
The collaboration between Carl Friedrich Gauss and the much younger Wilhelm
Weber began in 1831, and lasted for many years. Their first achievement was the mea-
surement of the magnetic elements, at prescribed times of day, in a new non-magnetic
building at Göttingen. At the urging of Alexander von Humboldt, they eventually
organised a network of observatories, at first in Europe, where measurements could
be made simultaneously with those in Göttingen. This initiative was based on von
Humboldts observations that the horizontal component of the field is strongest at the
equator and weakest at poles. He made observations over several years in different
parts of the globe (Korte and Mandea 2019) and encouraged initiatives to install new
observatories around the world.
To exploit the data from these observatories, in the late 1830s von Humboldt and
Gauss initialised the “Magnetische Verein” “(Göttingen Magnetic Union)”. They
developed a procedure to make measurements at 5-minute intervals. The Magnetic
Union, in fact, grew to include more and more observatories, being the very first
examples of international scientific cooperation and the forerunner of the Interna-
tional Association of Geomagnetism and Aeronomy1 (a constituent association of
the International Union of Geodesy and Geophysics2 ).
At that time, there were no possibilities for continuous recording, each measure-
ment being done manually, at intervals of two-three hours. The observations were
mainly done for declination with some measurements for inclination and field inten-
sity. Over the period between 1836–1841, some 50 observatories participated at this
program, with some 35 in Europe, the others outside Europe, of which only six in
the Southern hemisphere.
Gauss realised the need of measuring the full magnetic vector rather than only
declination and inclination, however he also realised that it was difficult with the
existing instruments. Sir Edward Sabine was the first to introduce complete mea-
surements protocol at the additional observatories established around 1840 in the
British Colonial territories. At that time the observers made prodigious efforts to do
hourly observations. An important achievement arrived with the introduction of pho-
tographic recordings in 1847, independently by Brooke (at Greenwich observatory)
and Ronald (at Kew observatory). Figure 6.3 shows three separate magnetograms for
three field components (declination, horizontal component and vertical component)
for the last day of 1857, as recorded at Kew observatory.
1 http://www.iaga-aiga.org.
2 http://www.iugg.org.
Fig. 6.3 Magnetogram for declination, horizontal component and vertical component recorded
at the Kew observatory, 30/12/1857 31/12/1857. Courtesy: British Geological Survey, Edinburgh
(United Kingdom)
6.2 Geomagnetic Observatories: From Analog to Digital Era 75
6.2 Geomagnetic Observatories: From Analog to Digital

Era
Since the installation of the first geomagnetic observatories, the network has con-
tinuously improved, in terms of both observatory distribution and the methodology
of measurements. Even if the distribution of observatories dramatically improved,
it still remains uneven in what the areas covered by land and oceans, or between
the Northern and Southern hemispheres are concerned, as shown in Fig. 6.4. While
some land regions such as Europe, Northern America, Australia, and parts of Asia
are covered by dense networks of observatories, others regions, like Africa, have
large coverage gaps. Over the recent decades a sustained effort has been made to
upgrade old observatories and install new observatories in remote locations such as
the oceanic islands (see (Chulliat 2019), and references therein). A substantial con-
tribution is brought forth by the INTERMAGNET (International Real-time Magnetic
Observatory Network)3 programme which establishes a global network of cooper-
ating digital magnetic observatories, with modern standard specifications for mea-
suring and recording equipment. INTERMAGNET is the platform which facilitates
magnetic data exchanges and the production of geomagnetic products in close to
real time. Despite this effort, the global geographical coverage of observatories has
remained nearly constant since the International Geophysical Year in 1958, at about
60% of the globe divided in 92 cells equal area grid.
Besides geomagnetic observatories, many countries used to make additional abso-
lute measurements at predefined locations and regular time intervals in order to pro-
duce higher resolution models of the geomagnetic secular variation on their territory,
Fig. 6.4 Distribution of the geomagnetic observatories operating in the frame of INTERMAGNET
programme. Currently, six Geomagnetic Information Nodes (GINs) are operating in Edinburgh
(United Kingdom), Golden (United States), Kyoto (Japan), Hiraiso (Japan), Ottawa (Canada), Paris
(France), and they are also indicated by red large circles). Courtesy: INTERMAGNET programme
3 https://www.intermagnet.org/.
mostly for navigation purposes. These measurements are also used for geomagnetic
models validation purposes. A notable accomplishment was carried out in Europe
in the frame of the MagNetE (Magnetic Network in Europe) programme, with the
realisation of the first European map for declination and its secular variation ??. This
chart is a credit to scientists from the 22 European states who collected and processed
the data and to the leaders who have conceived the initiative and brought the chart
to fruition see Part V). Nowadays, with the near-continuous availability of high-
quality magnetic satellite measurements, the utility of repeat stations has declined.
The repeat stations measurements are still performed in some countries for regional
mapping, being generally considered as a safety net in case satellite measurements
become unavailable.
Despite progress throughout the 20th century, no single existing instrument is able
to measure the geomagnetic field over its entire spectrum. Combining observations
with several instruments allows gathering homogeneous and accurate geomagnetic
data at a single location, for decades and even across centuries. Modern instruments
have been developed in the mid-20th century, based on the progress in quantum
mechanics and electronics. Nowadays, in modern observatories, a scalar (quantum)
magnetometer (proton, Overhauser magnetometer, or optically pumped magnetome-
ter) for field strength and a declination-inclination fluxgate magnetometer (DI-flux),
for declination and inclination, represent the norm.
All modern land-based magnetic observatories use similar instrumentation and
process the data in a comparable way to produce similar data products. For a full
description, see the INTERMAGNET Web site.4 The fundamental measurements
recorded are averaged one-minute values of the vector components and of scalar
intensity. Due to recent developments in observatory instrumentation and data acqui-
sition, filtered one-second data become also available through the INTERMAGNET
programme since 2014. The minimum standard of magnetometer performance is
given by a high stability and low noise, good linearity, high resolution (<0.01nT ),
and fast data-loggers with an accuracy of the time-stamp within 0.01s, and sharp
filtering.
6.2.1 Absolute Instruments
The scalar instruments use the quantum-mechanical properties of electrons and pro-
tons to produce an AC voltage with a frequency depending on the magnetic field
strength. A scalar measurement of the field intensity as previously noticed depends
only on the knowledge of a physical constant and a measurement of frequency. The
measurements achieved with such instruments have a great accuracy (in excess of
10 ppm). An Overhauser magnetometer, which has become the standard for mag-
netic observatories, has a better sensitivity (10–20 pT range for 1 s reading interval),
4 (https://www.intermagnet.org/publication-software/technicalsoft-eng.php).
less power consumption and near-continuous measurement of the magnetic field (see
Fig. 6.5).
Despite offering good improvements in sensitivity and speed, potassium (optically
pumped) magnetometers are not often present in magnetic observatories, but are an
alternative to Overhauser magnetometers when are used in a d I d D instrument. The
d I d D scalar magnetometer is used for the angular components determination (D
and I ) and field strength F. It consists of a proton, Overhauser or potassium magne-
tometer centered within two orthogonal coil systems aligned to be perpendicular to
the magnetic field direction in horizontal and vertical planes. If the orientations of
the coil are known, declination and inclination can be computed. It is considered a
quasi-absolute instrument due to changes in orientation but IT can be used to improve
the baselines of a triaxial fluxgate. Its drift is considered more linear and slower than
the drift of the fluxgate.
Scalar magnetometers make measurements of the strength of the geomagnetic
field only, and provide no information about its direction. It is also possible to make
an absolute measurement of the field directions by measuring the declination and
the inclination (the true north is determined by a reference to a fixed mark of known
azimuth, obtained either astronomically or by using a gyro).
The Declination-Inclination fluxgate magnetometer (DIM or DI-flux) is com-
monly used to measure declination and inclination, and requires manual operation.
The DI-flux consists of a non-magnetic theodolite and a single-axis fluxgate sensor
mounted on top of a telescope (see Fig. 6.6). The DI-flux is considered to be an
absolute instrument, which means that the angles measured by the instrument do not
deviate from their true values. This is achieved by using an observation procedure
that eliminates unknown parameters such as sensor offset, collimation angles and
theodolite errors. In a land-based observatory, such absolute measurements are typ-
ically performed once or twice a week, manually, and are used to monitor the drift
of the fluxgate variometers.
The DI-flux instrument is also suitable for measuring absolute declination and
inclination in ground surveys and repeat station measurements, or whenever an accu-
rate ground-based vector measurement is needed.
6.2.2 Variometers
A vector measurement is realised with a fluxgate magnetometer which operates with

minimal manual intervention. These instruments need to be installed in temperature-
controlled environments and on extremely stable platforms (however, some modern
systems are suspended and therefore compensate for the platform tilt). Despite these
precautions, they can still drift as a result of sources both within the instrument
(temperature effects) and also due to the stability of the instrument mounting. Because
these measurements are not absolute, they are referred to as variation measurements,
they have to be calibrated against standard instruments, and therefore the instruments
are known as variometers.
Fig. 6.5 A typical geomagnetic observatory sensor package–example of a proton magnetometer
One of the most widely used variometers is the FGE fluxgate manufactured by
the DTU Space–(National Space Institute at the Technical University of Denmark).
In recent years, a highly stable fluxgate magnetometer type FGE has been developed
and started to be produced (see Fig. 6.7). It is suitable for digital recording of the
magnetic field at observatories and in the field. The main idea behind this effort
has been to construct a reliable and very stable instrument, which does not suffer
from annoying drift with time and temperature. The sensor unit consists of three
orthogonally mounted sensors on a marble cube. In order to improve the long-term
stability, these sensors have compensation coils wound on quartz tubes, resulting in a
sensor drift of only a few nT · yr −1. The marble cube is suspended by two strips of
crossed phosphor-bronze working as a cardanic suspension to compensate for pillar
tilting that might cause baseline drift. Nonmagnetic electronics may be placed close
to the sensor head in a thermostatically controlled room to avoid any temperature
drift.
6.2.3 Automatic Observatories
Final magnetic data are obtained by considering a weekly determination of baseline

values from absolute measurements. The processing has to include the determination
of all systematic errors, and the quality of measurements depends strongly on the
experience and accuracy of the observer. It becomes even more challenging when
the station is unmanned most of the time. Because of this subjective parameter in the
final data products and because regular absolute measurements lack in remote areas,
Fig. 6.6 A typical geomagnetic observatory sensor package–example of a theodolite with fluxgate
coupled to the telescope (here used in survey mode for measuring the Southern continent repeat
station network)
several attempts have been made to operate absolute vector field instruments auto-
matically.The idea of an automatic standard magnetic observatory was planned some
decades ago: i.e. a device providing each time the absolute values of the geomagnetic
field (without extra independent absolute measurements, at least for a long enough
time span). For institutes running remote magnetic observatories, the automation of
the absolute observations is of particular interest. Very few attempts to automate
absolute observations can be noted Auster et al. (2007), Marsal et al. (2017). While
this idea can benefit the geomagnetic community, a fully automated magnetic obser-
vatory network is not yet foreseen.
Fig. 6.7 A typical

geomagnetic observatory
sensor package–example a
fluxgate magnetometer
6.3 Space Measurements: Magnetic Satellites
Magnetic observatory data can recover the largest spatial scales fairly accurately, but
have inherent limitations due to their geographical distribution. Smaller scales are
observed through various other methods, each method being generally designed for
a particular source or set of sources. These other measurement methods are neither
permanent, nor do they cover the entire globe. This limitation is partially addressed by
low-Earth orbit satellite measurements, which provide a nearly global coverage, but
limited universal time coverage and at a distance of several hundreds of kilometers
from the Earth’s internal magnetic field sources.
The history of magnetic satellites began with the POGO and OGO satellites,
between 1965 and 1971, that provided a global coverage of the magnetic field inten-
sity. The first precise low-Earth’s orbit satellite magnetic mission was MAGSAT,
conducted over several months in 1979 and 1980 (Langel and Estes 1982). After a
hiatus of two decades, this was follow by the rsted satellite launched in 1999.5 In
2000 two more satellites were launched, CHAMP6 in July and SAC-C in November
5 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/rsted_(satellite).
6.3 Space Measurements: Magnetic Satellites 81
Fig. 6.8 The Swarm satellite. The main magnetic instruments are installed on the 4-m boom,
the absolute scalar magnetometer (at the very end) and the vector magnetometer and the three
startrackers (halfway along the boom). Courtesy: ESA
(Olsen et al. 2000). Most recently a set of three satellites was launched in November
2013, as part of the Swarm mission.7
Swarm, a 3-satellite ESA constellation, is the most current, and most advanced
geomagnetic observatory in space. The three satellites are identical and the setting
of the magnetic instruments on the boom are given in Fig. 6.8.
The novelty of the Swarm mission comes from the new constellation concept,
and also from the use for the first time of the new absolute scalar magnetometer, an
optically pumped Helium magnetometer. This instrument provides absolute scalar
measurements of the magnetic field with a high accuracy and stability for the calibra-
tion of the vector field magnetometer (Leger et al. 2009). The mission was designed
to derive the first global representation of the geomagnetic field variations on time
scales from an hour to several years, addressing the crucial problem of source sepa-
ration. The three Swarm satellites are identical, and the constellation consists of two
satellites (A and C) flying almost side-by-side at an altitude close to 460 km (April
2016), longitude separation of 1.4◦ and on circular and almost polar orbits with an
inclination of 87.4◦ . The third satellite (B) flies higher, close to 510 km (April 2016),
on a more polar orbit (inclination of 87.8◦ ).
In the case of Swarm satellites the magnetic instruments are mounted on the boom,
which accounts for almost half the length of the satellite and trails at the back. This
solution is needed as the front surface is used so that the electric field instrument
is able to collect and measure the speed and direction of incident ions along the
orbital path. The optical bench holds the vector magnetometer and three startrackers
and is located halfway along the boom. The vector field magnetometer is the main
instrument, providing high-precision measurements of the magnitude and direction
of the magnetic vector field. The absolute scalar magnetometer measures the strength
of the magnetic field to greater accuracy than any other magnetometer, and provides
scalar measurements needed to calibrate the vector field magnetometer. All Swarm
data are freely available.8
6 https://www.gfz-potsdam.de/champ/.
7 https://www.esa.int/Our_Activities/Observing_the_Earth/Swarm.
8 https://earth.esa.int/web/guest/swarm/data-access.
References
Auster HU, Mandea M, Hemshorn A, Pulz E, Korte M (2007) Automation of absolute measurements
of the geomagnetic field. Earth, Planets Space 59(9):1007–1014
Chulliat A (2019) Geomagnetic and electromagnetic observations at ground level: geomagnetic
measurements. In: Mandea M, Korte M, Yau A, Petrovsky E (eds) Special publications of the
international union of geodesy and geophysics. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge. https://
doi.org/10.1017/9781108290135
Korte M, Mandea M (2019) Geomagnetism: from alexander von humboldt to current challenges.
Geochem Geophys Geosyst 20(8):3801–3820. https://doi.org/10.1029/2019GC008324, https://
agupubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1029/2019GC008324
Langel RA, Estes RH (1982) A geomagnetic field spectrum. Geophys Res Lett 9:250–253
Leger J, Bertrand F, Jager T, Le Prado M, Fratter I, Lalaurie J (2009) Swarm absolute scalar and
vector magnetometer based on helium 4 optical pumping. In: Proceedings of the Eurosensors
XXIII conference, pp 634–637. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.proche.2009.07.158
Marsal S, Curto JJ, Torta JM, Gonsette A, Favà V, Rasson J, Ibañez M, Cid O (2017) An automatic
di-flux at the livingston island geomagnetic observatory, antarctica: requirements and lessons
learned. Geosci Instrum Methods Data Syst 6(2):269–277. https://doi.org/10.5194/gi-6-269-
2017, https://gi.copernicus.org/articles/6/269/2017/
Olsen N, Holme R, Hulot G, Sabaka T, Neubert T, Tøffner-Clausen L, Primdahl F, Jørgensen J,
Léger JM, Barraclough D, Bloxham J, Cain J, Constable C, Golovkov V, Jackson A, Kotzé P,
Langlais B, Macmillan S, Mandea M, Merayo J, Newitt L, Purucker M, Risbo T, Stampe M,
Thomson A, Voorhies C (2000) Ørsted initial field model. Geophys Res Lett 27:3607–3610
Part V
Some Specific Features of the Magnetic
Declination
Chapter 7
Maps of Magnetic Declination Over
the Last Centuries
Efforts in getting a full picture of the geomagnetic field have been recorded over
the last decades, and models covering more than some four centuries are now avail-
able. Determining the historic geomagnetic field for the period from 1500 to 1900
implies certain difficulties. There are three primary reasons for this, the first one being
the irregular distribution of observations, as throughout the history of the 16–18th
centuries, they were mainly carried out along shipping routes. Secondly, the observa-
tions contain errors resulting from inadequate instrument quality. Finally, the early
observations of the magnetic field were made using direction, and not magnitude
of the field vector. A robust investigation aimed at realising a quality control and
systematisation of all observations obtained between 1510 and 1930 was conducted
by Jonkers et al. (2003). The historical observations were used to produce models
over the last centuries (Jackson et al. 2000).
In 2014, an Atlas of the Earth’s magnetic field, as a unified set of physical,
geographic, thematic, and historical information from 1500 to 2010 was published
(Soloviev et al. 2014). This Atlas presents maps of the field components, the field
intensity and the following six components: declination, inclination, three axial pro-
jections, and projection onto a plane tangential to the geoid. All field components
were calculated at nodes of the geographical grid with a 0.2◦ interval in latitude and
longitude, and at sea level. For the periods 1500–2000, the maps are plotted on a
time interval of 25 years. For the last two decades a time interval of 5 years is chosen
in order to provide an insight of this period. The isoline charts of the corresponding
components are plotted with intervals between computed isogonic and isoclinic lines
equal to 5◦ . Here, only maps for declination are included (Figs. 7.1, 7.2, 7.3, 7.4, 7.5,
7.6 and 7.7).

86 7 Maps of Magnetic Declination Over the Last Centuries
Fig. 7.1 Maps of the declination (full curves) over for the epochs 1500 (red curves), 1550 (green
curves), 1600 (blue curves). The magnetic equators for the three epochs are drawn in dashed curves.
After Soloviev et al. (2014)
7 Maps of Magnetic Declination Over the Last Centuries 87
88 7 Maps of Magnetic Declination Over the Last Centuries
References 89
References
Jackson A, Jonkers ART, Walker MR (2000) Four centuries of geomagnetic secular variation from
historical records. Philos Trans R Soc Lond A 358:957–990
Soloviev A, Khokhlov A, Jalkovsky E, Berezko A, Lebedev A, Kharin E, Shestopalov I, Mandea
M, Kuznetsov V, Bondar T, Mabie J, Nisilevich M, Nechitailenko V, Rybkina A, Pyatygina O,
Shibaeva A (2014) The atlas of the earth’s magnetic field. GC RAS, Moscow, p 361. https://doi.
org/10.2205/2013BS011_Atlas_MPZ
Chapter 8
Spatial Evolution: Westward Drift
The western drift of the Earth’s magnetic field is a very interesting feature and it
was first described by Halley in 1692, based on declination measurements. Hal-
ley compared measurements made by himself with previously existing ones, noted
changes in the declination values and noted “In all the other examples, the needle
has gradually moved towards the West”. One specific observation is the change of
the zero declination (agone) with a shift from the Cape d’Agulhas to the meridian of
St. Helena (some 23◦ in 90 year s). Since this first remarkable observation made by
Halley, this geomagnetic field feature has continuously moved. The westward drift
is very clear during the succeeding three centuries, as shown in Figs. 7.1, 7.2, 7.3,
7.4, 7.5 and 7.6.
Halley’s observations need to be coupled with his hypothesis about possible mech-
anisms and the Earth’s internal structure. He proposed an Earth’s shell-like structure,
published in 1692 (“An Account of the Cause of the Change of the Variation of the
Magnetical Needle; With an Hypothesis of the Internal Parts of the Earth”). In this
scheme, the Earth is made up of an outer shell that is one of three nested, equidis-
tant, and equally-thick circles. The inner space is constituted by Subterraneous Orbs
capable of being inhabited, as shown in Fig. 8.1.
This observation, confirmed by worldwide measurements since the beginning of
the 17th century, is still one of the most apparent feature of the Earth’s magnetic field
secular variation.
Many studies followed in order to estimate the western drift rate. Bauer (1895)
studied the drift of the agonic lines in London and provided one of the first estima-
tion of the mean westward drift rate of 0.2◦ · yr −1 . Bullard et al. (1950) analysed
changes of the geomagnetic field between 1907–1945 and provided a value of the
geomagnetic westward drift of 0.2◦ · yr −1 . The same value is estimated by Vestine
and Kahle (1968), when analysing measurements over the period 1910–1965. Both
last indicated studies make a distinction between the westward drift of the core field
of about 0.3◦ · yr −1 and the non dipole field 0.2◦ · yr −1 . To explain this observation,
Bullard et al. (1950) invoked a less rapid rotation of the outer part of the fluid core
92 8 Spatial Evolution: Westward Drift
Fig. 8.1 Halley’s hollow-earth schema. The stave containing bass and treble clefs along with the
vertical lines descending from its foot are part of a paper-saving illustration to Francis Roberts’
essay on trumpet notes in the same number. After Halley (1692)
8 Spatial Evolution: Westward Drift 93
Fig. 8.2 Geomagnetic declination over Europe for the epoch 2006 (red curves 1 degree, green
curves 1/3 degree). Courtesy: Commission for the Geological Map of the World (CGMW)
compared to the remaining inner part, resulting in a westward motion relative to the
mantle. These first observations have been confirmed by many studies, indicating that
the westward drift is fluctuating but remains a continuous feature of the secular vari-
ation of the Earth’s field, with an average of 0.2◦ · yr −1 for the last four centuries. A
detailed description of the geomagnetic westward drift over historical records is pro-
vided by Finlay and Jackson (2003). Indeed, Finlay and Jackson (2003) analysed the
evolution the non axisymmetric part of the radial field that vary on timescale smaller
than 400 years, and showed that the computed westward drift over this period is
around 17 km.
This specific characteristic of the geomagnetic field can be observed even at a
continental scale. One clear example is for Europe. A huge effort was done at the
beginning of 2000, to gather all ground observations made in Europe, provided by
magnetic observatories and national repeat stations networks. This declination map
is based on field measurements at 382 magnetic repeat stations in 21 states, in the
period 2005 to 2007. In addition, 42 geomagnetic observatories provided annual mean
values for 2006 to enhance the spatial data density. The map (Fig. 8.2) represents the
core field declination and large scale influences from magnetised structures of the
94 8 Spatial Evolution: Westward Drift
Fig. 8.3 The annual change of geomagnetic declination over Europe for the epoch 2006 (min-
utes/per year). Courtesy: Commission for the Geological Map of the World (CGMW)
lithosphere, with a grid size of 100 km. The lithosphere contributions remain constant
of the decadal time scale. The core field contribution changes on this time scale, and
the isoges (curves indicating the same value of declination) move westward, the rate
of the secular variation being indicated on the smaller map and separately on the
Fig. 8.3. Since no ground measurements are available over the maritime areas, such
as parts of the Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea, some declination values
of the International Geomagnetic Reference Field (IGRF),1 have been added to fill
in these gaps.
The annual change of magnetic declination is estimated from the IGRF model for
the epoch 2006 and it is shown in the separate map for a better reading (Fig. 8.3).
What is of particular interest here is that the secular variation, and thus the geo-
magnetic westward drift are more prominent features in the Atlantic hemisphere and
more intense when closer to the magnetic equator. The interpretation is typically
1 http://www.ngdc.noaa.gov/IAGA/vmod/index.html.
References 95
focused on the dynamics of the outer core. The most accepted hypothesis is that the
outer core contains a gyre similar to the atmosphere’s jet stream. This gyre moves
westward and drags the Earth’s magnetic field along with it. The existence of this
gyre is somehow questionable, and other explanations are still possible.
References
Bauer L (1895) On the secular motion of a free magnetic needle. Phys Rev (Ser I) 6(455). https://
doi.org/10.1126/science.ns-20.506.218
Bullard EC, Freeman C, Gellman H, Nixon J (1950) The westward drift of the Earth’s magnetic
field. Philos Trans R Soc Lond A 243:61–92
Finlay CC, Jackson A (2003) Equatorially dominated magnetic field change at the surface of Earth’s
core. Science 300:2084–2086
Halley E (1692) An account of the cause of the change of the magnetical needle, with an hypothesis
of the structure of the internal parts of the Earth. Philos Trans R Soc Lond Ser I A16:563–578
Vestine EH, Kahle AB (1968) The westward drift and geomagnetic secular change. Geophys J Int
15(1–2):29–37. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-246X.1968.tb05743.x
Chapter 9
Temporal Evolution: Geomagnetic Jerks
The magnetic declination observations have played a crucial role in understanding the
short-term variations of the core magnetic field, the so-called “geomagnetic jerks”,
their detection and origin. A geomagnetic jerk can be defined as a sudden change (a
“V” or “Λ” shape-like change) in the slope of the geomagnetic secular variation (the
first time derivative of the Earth’s magnetic field), or an abrupt (step-like) change
in the secular acceleration (the second time derivative) (see Mandea et al. (2010)).
As a first approximation, the secular variation can be described as a set of linear
changes across some years leading up to some decades, separated by geomagnetic
jerks occurring on a time-scale of a few months when the nearly constant secular
acceleration changes its sign (and, eventually, its magnitude) abruptly, as shown in
Fig. 9.1.
The first authors to recognise this phenomenon were Courtillot et al. (1978) and
Malin et al. (1983), who through analysis of observatory annual means detected an
impulse in 1970, seen particularly clearly in the declination and east component at
European observatories, now generally known as the 1969 geomagnetic jerk.
Initially, it was unclear whether this signal was of internal or external origin. In
time, it has been established that a jerk is a reorganisation of the large-scale secular
variation, leading to a broad consensus of an internal origin; however, questions
regarding their underlying dynamics are still in debate, even if important progress
has been done, in both data analysis and numerical simulations.
The temporal resolution of annual means is not adequate to get very accurate
information on the characteristics of geomagnetic jerks; however, the long declination
series such as those described in Part III, are the only sets of data which can be used
to detect these events prior to the 20th century. The role of declination measurements
in understanding the Earth’s interior is clear.
The Paris declination curve clearly exhibits a number of changes in the secular
variation, as shown in Fig. 9.2. The figure clearly shows that prior to the 20th century,
one of the most prominent geomagnetic jerks appears around 1870. This event is also

98 9 Temporal Evolution: Geomagnetic Jerks
Fig. 9.1 Geomagnetic jerk definition: a V-shaped change in the slope of the secular variation (upper
panel, in nT · yr −2 ), or equivalently a step-like change in the secular acceleration (bottom panel,
in nT · yr −2 ). Synthetic data are used
observed in four other European locations (Alexandrescu et al. 1997) and has been
also detected in the Munich curve (Korte et al. 2009), although a few years earlier.
Going back in time there is evidence of changes in the secular variation trends,
supported by measurements around the epochs: 1600, 1665, 1700, 1730, 1750, 1760,
1770, 1810, 1870, 1890, 1900. These dates are close to those detected by Qamili et al.
(2013): 1603, 1663, 1703, 1733, 1751, 1763, 1770, 1810, 1868–1870, 1888, 1900,
when analysing the temporal behavior of the difference between predicted and actual
geomagnetic field model values for successive intervals from 1600 to 1980, based
on gufm1 geomagnetic model (Jackson et al. 2000).
The geomagnetic jerks can be observed in the various field components (core
field, secular variation and secular acceleration) when applying different detection
methods. A detection method needs to consider several factors linked to the available
data: noise content in the data and its origin, the asynchronous form of a jerk in each
field component, temporal and spatial scales at which an event is significant enough
to be seen as a jerk. These factors are summarised here:
• The quality of data varies back in time, as shown before for long-time series.
Before mid-19th century only directional observations were available, so the char-
acterisation of the secular variation via the full vector field was not possible. Only
during the 20th century were the three field components available for a set of
9 Temporal Evolution: Geomagnetic Jerks 99
Fig. 9.2 Secular variation of the declination series for Paris, computed as annual differences and
applying an 11-yr smoothing
observatories allowing comparison between different locations and different field

components.
• The first data analyses were focused on declination and east component, mainly for
two reasons. The first analyses were based on data provided by European obser-
vatories, where the geomagnetic jerks are clearly in these components time series
(see Fig. 9.3). It should be noted that the behaviour of the East component secu-
lar variation is different for Chambon-la-Forêt (48.025◦ N, 2.260◦ E) and Niemegk
(52.07◦ N, 12.68◦ E) observatories, even if these two observatories are relatively
close.
• The declination and the east magnetic field component are less affected by the
external sources, i.e. electrical currents flowing in the Earth’s ionosphere and
magnetosphere. Different methods have been applied to minimise the external
field contributions in geomagnetic series (monthly or annual means), via geo-
magnetic indices or a combination of field models and magnetic indices (e.g.
De Michelis et al. 2000; Verbanac et al. 2007). Different attempts have been also
applied to parameterise the external field sources during the modelling processes.
These models are also suitable for obtaining series of data and for investigating
geomagnetic jerks, mainly when considering three field components.
• The geomagnetic observatories are mainly located on continental areas and the
northern hemisphere is better covered than the southern hemisphere. It is then
important to recall the effect of the uneven distribution of observatories in the
definition of geomagnetic jerk characteristics. Identified regional jerks have been
possible not only because more and more sophisticated methods have been applied
(see Mandea et al. 2010), but also due to the use of full field geometry.
Fig. 9.3 In red it is shown the secular variation for the East component at Chambon-la-Forêt
(clf—48.025◦ N, 2.260◦ E), France and, in blue, at Niemegk (ngk—52.07◦ N, 12.68◦ E), Germany
The physical mechanisms responsible for most of the field changes take place
over time scales from decades to centuries, so the observatory data are crucial. Nev-
ertheless, shorter inter-annual fluctuations may be characterised with satellite data
alone. To directly use satellite data the concept of “virtual observatory” (VO) was
introduced by Mandea and Olsen (2006). The method provides the basis for using
satellite measurements through a regression of these into local time series of the
field at pre-determined locations. Such virtual observatory time series represent vec-
tor field estimates at mean orbital altitude.
The VO data are obtained from satellite measurements in the near vicinity of
a given location, and within a chosen time window. As for ground-based records,
by taking annual differences of these locally derived field estimates, geomagnetic
time series can be obtained. Important issues are due to the insufficient local time
sampling and contamination from external sources such as the magnetospheric ring
current and ionospheric current systems Olsen and Mandea (2007), Beggan and
Whaler (2009), additional data processing steps, changes to the modelling scheme
and de-noising procedures need to be considered. Comparisons of the VO time series
with independent ground observatory records and spherical harmonic field models
have demonstrated a good agreement on all three vector field components Lesur et al.
(2022).
Figure 9.4 allows a visual inspection of patterns of sub-decadal secular variation
trends and changes. Low latitude regions display particularly strong variations, which
occur at different times over different longitudes. Distinctive “V” or “Λ” shape-
like changes occur regionally over time spans ranging from 5 to 10 years. Such
9 Temporal Evolution: Geomagnetic Jerks 101
Fig. 9.4 Time series of the radial secular variation computed as annual differences of 4 monthly at an
altitude of 700 km. The series are obtained from measurements provided by Ørsted (1999–2004),
CHAMP (2002–2010), CHAOS-6x9 calibrated CryoSat-2 (2010–2014) and the Swarm (2014–
2020) satellite missions. The scale of the time series is shown in the bottom left corner, with the
y-axis being 20nT · yr −2 and the x-axis going from 1999 to 2020. After Lesur et al. (2022)
rapid changes in the field secular variations can be observed over the South-Atlantic
region around 2007 and again in 2014, over Indonesia around 2014, and over the
Pacific region around 2017. This way to represent the secular variation, globally, is
suitable for studying interannual and longer field changes at satellite altitude. The VO
approach fosters the observation of a more frequent occurrence of jerk-like events:
in 2003 (Olsen and Mandea 2008), 2007 (Olsen et al. 2009), 2011 (Chulliat et al.
2015), 2014 (Torta et al. 2015), and most recently in 2017 or 2020 (Pavón-Carrasco
et al. 2021). These events, noted at some 3–4 years, suggest that they are caused
by an oscillatory phenomenon within the outer core. Recently, Aubert and Finlay
(2019) showed that numerical simulations of the geodynamo can account for the
interaction between slow core convection and rapid hydromagnetic waves, leading
to the jerk-like events.
Again, the role of measurements, and mainly declination measurements offer a
clear picture of the geomagnetic jerks occurrence. Together with numerical simu-
lations more information are obtained about why they happen and how it might be
possible to predict them, and finally about the physics of Earth’s core.
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Olsen N, Mandea M (2008) Rapidly changing flows in the Earth’s core. Nat Geosci 1:390–394.
https://doi.org/10.1038/ngeo203
Olsen N, Mandea M, Sabaka TJ, Tøffner-Clausen L (2009) CHAOS-2-a geomagnetic field model
derived from one decade of continuous satellite data. Geophys J Int 179:1477–1487. https://doi.
org/10.1111/j.1365-246X.2009.04386.x
Pavón-Carrasco FJ, Marsal S, Campuzano S, Torta J (2021) Signs of a new geomagnetic jerk
between 2019 and 2020 from swarm and observatory data. Earth Planets Space 73. https://doi.
org/10.1186/s40623-021-01504-2
Qamili E, De Santis A, Isac A, Mandea M, Duka B, Simonyan A (2013) Geomagnetic jerks as
chaotic fluctuations of the earth’s magnetic field. Geochem Geophys Geosyst 14(4):839–850.
https://doi.org/10.1029/2012GC004398
Torta JM, Pavón-Carrasco FJ, Marsal S, Finlay CC (2015) Evidence for a new geomagnetic jerk in
2014. Geophys Res Lett 42(19):7933–7940. https://doi.org/10.1002/2015GL065501
Verbanac G, Lühr H, Rother M, Korte M, Mandea M (2007) Contributions of the external field to
the observatory annual means and a proposal for their corrections. Earth Planets Space. https://
doi.org/10.1186/BF03353102
Chapter 10
Geomagnetic and Magnetic Poles
The Earth can be seen as a Planet with... more them two poles: two poles related to
the Earth’s rotation (geographic poles), two geomagnetic poles, and two magnetic
dip poles, known also as magnetic poles.
The geographic poles are the points where the axis the Earth rotates around meets
the surface, and are antipodal (symmetrically opposite) at +/−90◦ latitude.
Our “magnetic” Planet is associated with the geomagnetic field that has a south
(north) pole of a magnet near the north (south) pole. A magnetic compass, therefore,
approximately points toward the north. The generic term “magnetic poles of the
Earth” is sometimes used with a differing meaning depending on the type of analysis
used to define them.
The geomagnetic poles are defined as the location where the axis of a best-fitting
dipole intersects the surface of the Earth. This theoretical dipole is equivalent to
a powerful bar magnet at the center of Earth, and describes the great part of the
magnetic field observed at Earth’s surface, which is nevertheless more complicated
than a simple dipole. This dipole defines an axis that intersects the Earth’s surface at
two antipodal points. The axis of the equivalent dipole is currently inclined at about
10◦ to the Earth’s rotation axis.
The magnetic dip pole positions are given by locations where the field vector is
perpendicular to the surface. These poles are called “dip poles”, and the north and
south dip poles do not have to be antipodal. The dip poles can be found by conducting
a magnetic survey to determine where the field is vertical. The model dip magnetic
poles definition derives from global models of the geomagnetic field, which describe
a part of the field originating in the core.
The geomagnetic poles and model dip pole cannot be located by direct local
surveys.
104 10 Geomagnetic and Magnetic Poles
10.1 The Geomagnetic Poles
The geomagnetic poles are symmetric, representing the intersection of the geomag-
netic field representation with the Earth’s surface. As the geomagnetic field is global
in nature, the most obvious approach is to describe it on the whole Earth’s surface.
A completely general solution is provided by spherical harmonics, and can be
written in such a form to express two important contributions in the potential field: a
part describing the internal (core and lithospheric) sources, and a part describing the
external (mainly magnetospheric) sources (Mandea et al. 2020). The coefficients of
such a description of the magnetic field are used to define the magnetic field in terms
of “sources”. The first term is associated with the geocentric dipole oriented along
the vertical axis, i.e., the axis of the Earth’s rotation. The next two terms characterise
the geocentric dipoles oriented along the two last orthogonal axes. These terms are
used to compute the locations of the North and South geomagnetic poles. They are
plotted with positions of the magnetic poles in Figs. 10.6 and 10.7.
10.2 The Magnetic Poles
The North magnetic pole is the location in the northern hemisphere where the Earth’s
magnetic field lines point straight downwards, penetrating the surface. The South
magnetic pole is situated in the southern hemisphere where the magnetic lines are
directly pointing upward. Both pole locations change over time, but at a different
speed. Moreover, the various movements of the location of the two magnetic poles
often seem to bear no relationship with each other.
10.2.1 The North Magnetic Pole
In the Arctic a compass positioned between the magnetic and the geographical north
pole points south, towards the magnetic pole and away from the geographical pole,
amounting to a magnetic declination of around 180◦ .
There are many difficulties at stake when making a survey to determine the loca-
tions of the magnetic poles, firstly given the remoteness and harsh climatic conditions.
The other difficulty stems from the seemingly random movements on the scale of
km occurring almost daily: the pole wanders in a roughly elliptical path around its
average position, and may frequently be as much as 80 km away from this position,
depending on the geomagnetic disturbances in the ionosphere and magnetosphere.
Another complicating factor is the presence of the magnetised rocks. This is not
included in some models and is partly included in some others, only on large scales.
These are the main factors which explain the differences between the model dip poles
and measured dip poles. In addition, the magnetic poles seem to have experienced a
10.2 The Magnetic Poles 105
Fig. 10.1 Carta Marina of 1539 by Olaus Magnus depicts the location of Magnetic north. Courtesy:
Public domain
general drift over a period of centuries. Close to the pole, there lies an area where the
compass starts to behave erratically, and eventually, as the horizontal force decreases
even more, the compass becomes unusable.
Early European navigators, cartographers and scientists believed that compass
needles were attracted to a hypothetical “magnetic island” somewhere in the far
north. The Carta Marina of 1539 by Olaus Magnus depicts the location of magnetic
north vaguely conceived as “Island of Magnets” off the modern city Murmansk. The
rune staffs are inscribed “Starcaterus” (left) and “pugil Sueticus” (right) in runes
(Fig. 10.1).
The positions of magnetic poles are determined by direct measurements. Sir John
Ross was the first to reach the North magnetic pole. Figure 10.2 illustrates the Ross
expedition determining the North magnetic pole in 1831. Sir John Ross was a Scottish
rear admiral and the leader of two important Arctic expeditions. In 1818, he explored
the western coast of Greenland and the coast of Baffin Island in an attempt to navigate
the Northwest Passage. From 1829 to 1833, his ship was caught in ice for four winters,
and it was during this time that his nephew, James Clark Ross, who accompanied
him on all his explorations, became, on 1 June, 1831, the first European to reach the
North magnetic pole. He measured at Cape Adelaide on the west coast of Boothia
Peninsula a dip of 89◦ 59 .
Roald Amundsen headed to the Arctic 70 years later to set up a temporary magnetic
observatory to relocate the pole. In the century since, only a handful of others have
made it to the North magnetic pole. Even now, tracking its movement is a challenge.
The following observations were realized by Paul Serson and Jack Clark in 1947,
and thereafter by scientists from the Geological Survey of Canada (Newitt et al. 2009).
Following the 2001 survey, realised within the framework of a Canadian-French
international collaboration, direct measurements determined that the pole is moving
approximately north-northwest at 55 km · yr −1 (Newitt et al. 2002). Participating
to such a survey is at the same time a rare and great experience (Fig. 10.3). The
Fig. 10.2 Drawing showing James Clark Ross and co-workers locating the North magnetic pole
in 1831. After Ross (1834)
Table 10.1 North magnetic pole positions

1831 70◦ 05 N 96◦ 47 W James Ross
1904 70◦ 31 N 96◦ 34 W Amundsen
1948 73◦ 54 N 100◦ 54 W Serson, Clark
1962 75◦ 06 N 100◦ 48 W Loomer, Dawson
1973 76◦ 00 N 100◦ 36 W Niblett, Charboneau
1984 77◦ 00 N 102◦ 18 W Newitt, Niblett
1994 78◦ 18 N 104◦ 00 W Newitt, Barton
2001 81◦ 18 N 110◦ 48 W Newitt, Mandea,
McKee, Orgeval
2007 83◦ 57 N 120◦ 43 W Newitt, Chulliat,
Orgeval
measurements done during these surveys have showed an unprecedented increase in

the pole rate of motion.
The measured positions of the North magnetic pole are summarised in Table 10.1.
Fig. 10.3 Canadian–French surveys of the North magnetic pole in 2001. Flying in a Twin Otter
plane from Resolute Bay to the frozen Arctic Ocean to survey the North Magnetic Pole. It was the
first time a woman had ever joined the expedition–Mioara Mandea (right) with Lorne McKee (left)
making inclination measurements
Table 10.2 South magnetic pole positions (∼ marks an approximate measurement)

1840 ∼75◦ 20 S ∼132◦ 20 W Vincendon-Dumoulin,
Coupvert
1840 ∼71◦ 55 S ∼144◦ 00 W Wilkes
1841 ∼75◦ 05 S ∼154◦ 08 W Ross
1899 ∼72◦ 40 S ∼152◦ 30 W Bernacchi, Colbeck
1903 ∼72◦ 51 S ∼156◦ 25 W Chetwynd
1909 ◦
72 25 S ◦
155 16 W Mawson
1912 71◦ 10 S 150◦ 45 W Webb
1931 70◦ 20 S 149◦ 00 W Kennedy
1952 ◦
68 42 S 143◦ 00 W Mayaud
1962 67◦ 30 S 140◦ 00 W Burrows, Hanley
1986 ∼65◦ 20 S ∼139◦ 10 W Quilte, Barton
2000 64◦ 40 S 138◦ 20 W Barton
Fig. 10.4 Douglas Mawson, Edgeworth David, and Alistair Mackay from Sir Ernest Shackleton’s
Nimrod Expedition, in 1909. Courtesy: Public domain
10.2.2 The South Magnetic Pole
Measurements of the South magnetic pole position are also available (see Table 10.2),
although not all of these are very accurate. The first attempts to reach the South
magnetic pole included those of the French explorer Dumont d’Urville, the American
Charles Wilkes and Briton James Clark Ross, all unsuccessful. The first calculation of
the magnetic inclination to locate the South magnetic pole was made at the beginning
of 1838 by Clement Adrien Vincendon-Dumoulin a member of the Dumont d’Urville
expedition in Antarctica and Oceania.
Several other attempts followed, but the first complete set of measurements were
made in 1909 by Douglas Mawson, Edgeworth David, and Alistair Mackay from Sir
Ernest Shackleton’s Nimrod Expedition (Fig. 10.4). Mawson claimed to have found
the South magnetic pole, providing its position in 1909. They certainly got close to
the pole, but how close remains uncertain; it is now thought that the error is in the
range of some 130 km. Considering the difficulty of such measurements, the quality
of many of these incipient determinations is however to be taken with precaution.
The last expedition to locate the South magnetic pole was conducted in 2000,
by which time the pole had moved into the Southern Ocean. The expedition was
carried out by the Australian Charles Barton, who had dedicated several decades to
reaching the pole. His quest for the magnetic pole began in 1985, marking the first
Australian commercial flight over Antarctica in the hope of flying over the South
Fig. 10.5 Barton and the equipment developed to search for the South magnetic pole, a fluxgate
magnetometer
magnetic pole. Using a very sensitive equipment, Barton came within 1.6 km of the
pole in December 2000 (Fig. 10.5).
The measured positions of the South magnetic pole, including the early attempts,
are summarised in Table 10.2.
Is it also possible to compute the positions of the two magnetic poles based on the
core field models. Using Jackson et al. (2000) model, the positions of both magnetic
poles can be computed on the annual basis between 1590 and 1990. Since the begin-
ning of the 20th available positions can be computed using other available models,
the one chosen here is the International Geomagnetic Field Model (IGRF) series.1
The positions of the magnetic poles obtained from models can be compared with
the locations of the poles obtained from direct observations, as reported previously.
Taking into account that the model was established without any use of the magnetic
measurements related to the locations of the poles, the agreement is remarkable and
provides a good a posteriori validation of models. Because fewer measurements are
available in the southern Hemisphere, the model yields less accurate estimates of the
South magnetic pole positions.
The North magnetic pole has, over the centuries, moved more or less unpredictably
into the archipelagos of northern Canada. Since the end of the 19th century, it has
been heading toward Siberia. Since the 1970s, the movement has accelerated from
about 15 km · yr −1 to some 50–55 km · yr −1 , currently. By 2001, the North magnetic
pole had entered the Arctic Ocean and in 2018, the pole crossed the International
Date Line into the eastern Hemisphere. It is currently making a beeline for Siberia
(Fig. 10.6).
1 https://www.ngdc.noaa.gov/IAGA/vmod/igrf.html.
Fig. 10.6 North magnetic pole positions (blue circles) and geomagnetic poles positions as (magenta
circles) as computed from gufm1 model and IGRF-13 model. All symbols are at 5-yr interval. The
positions of magnetic dip pole (red diamonds) with the year of measurements are indicated in red
Fig. 10.7 South magnetic pole positions (blue circles) and geomagnetic poles positions as (magenta
circles) as computed from gufm1 model and IGRF-13 model. All symbols are at 5-yr interval. The
positions of magnetic dip pole (red diamonds) with the year of measurements are indicated in red
References 111
The good agreement between models and observations of magnetic pole posi-
tions prompts us to construct a continuous variation of the pole velocities over the
century, and to compare the velocity of North and South magnetic poles. The recent
South magnetic pole velocity is remarkably moderate and does not reflect the sudden
increase noted in the North magnetic pole velocity (Newitt et al. 2002). Figure 10.7
shows the behavior of South magnetic and geomagnetic poles.
During the first half of the 20th century the north and south magnetic poles veloci-
ties are comparable, around some 10 km.yr −1 . Since 1970 (time of a well-documented
geomagnetic jerk) the North magnetic pole has moved from Canada towards Siberia,
with velocities reaching some 60 km.yr −1 (Newitt et al. 2002; Olsen and Mandea
2007) and the South pole towards Australia, with a much lower velocity of around
5 km.yr −1 . This demonstrates a clear asymmetry in the magnetic poles’ behavior.
The rapid change in the North magnetic pole positions can be thought of as a
signature of a sudden change in the behavior of the field. However, in the other
hemisphere the South magnetic pole has kept nearly the same velocity rate (Mandea
and Dormy 2003). The location of the North magnetic pole appears to be governed
by two large-scale patches of magnetic field, one beneath Canada and one beneath
Siberia, and could be linked to a high-speed jet of liquid iron beneath Canada (Liv-
ermore et al. 2016). The fast accelerating/decelerating of the North magnetic field
has a large significance for space weather, considering the dynamic polar processes.
Scientists and polar explorers have shown an interest in the locations of the mag-
netic and geomagnetic poles. The geomagnetic poles are important as the auroral
ovals, which are approximately 5◦ latitude bands and where the spectacular aurora
are likely to be seen, are centred on these poles. Usually, these phenomena are dis-
placed slightly to the night-side of the geomagnetic poles and are variable in size,
with bands of greatest activity occurring between 15 and 25◦ from the geomagnetic
poles.
Moreover, many coordinate systems used to study the Earth’s magnetosphere have
the dipole axis as a defining element in this current system around our Planet. In
addition, magnetic field reversals are determined by the flipping of the geomagnetic
poles. This hypothesis helps to simplify the geomagnetic field geometry and identify
the ancient poles. They are defined by the direction of the ancient magnetic field
frozen into certain kinds of rock, considering a tilted dipole located at the Earth’s
centre.
References
Livermore P, Finlay C, Hollerbach R (2016) An accelerating high-latitude jet in earth’s core. In:
SEDI meeting abstracts
Mandea M, Dormy E (2003) Asymmetric behaviour of magnetic dip poles. Earth Planets Space
55:153–157
Mandea M, Gaina C, Lesur V (2020) Magnetic modeling, theory and computation. In: Encyclopedia
of solid earth geophysics, 2nd edn. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-10475-7_232-1
Newitt LR, Chulliat A, Orgeval JJ (2009) Location of the north magnetic pole in April 2007, vol
61, pp 703–710
Newitt LR, Mandea M, McKee LA, Orgeval JJ (2002) Recent acceleration of the North Magnetic
Pole linked to magnetic jerks. EOS Trans Am Geophys Union 83(35):381–389
Olsen N, Mandea M (2007) Will the magnetic north pole wind up in Siberia? EOS Trans Am
Geophys Union
Ross JC (1834) On the position of the north magnetic pole. Trans Phil Soc Lond 124(47–51)
Chapter 11
What Next?
11.1 Magnetic Declination at the Space Era
After centuries of measurements and improvements in understanding the geomag-

netic field variations and mainly the ones related to the magnetic declination, an
immediate question arises. Why are we still interested in magnetic field variations,
so in its declination?
The magnetic field continue to surprise us, at terrestrial and planetary scales. From
1970 to 2020, the geomagnetic field strength diminished continuously over a large
part of South Atlantic–South American continent. In this area the field intensity has
dropped to some 22000 nT , while at the same time the area of the anomaly has grown
and moved westward with some 20km · yr−1km. Over the past five years, a second
centre of minimum intensity has emerged southwest of Africa–indicating that the
South Atlantic–South America Anomaly could split up into two separate cells.
This behavior of the geomagnetic field is also reflected in the change of the
magnetic equator, mainly in the area of great fluctuation, situated in the Northern
part of the South America. This is shown in Fig. 11.1, based on a new approach to
the modelling of the Earth’s magnetic field proposed by Ropp et al. (2020).
At surface level, this large anomaly presents no cause for alarm. Nevertheless,
satellites and other spacecraft flying in altitude through this area may experience
technical malfunctions as the magnetic field is weaker, allowing charged particles to
penetrate the altitudes of low-Earth orbit satellites.
In our technological times, when humans are more and more connected to space
platforms in their daily life, the Earth’s magnetic field becomes all the more impor-
tant. Centuries ago, the magnetic field allowed humanity to navigate around the
globe and discover new lands. Nowadays, the geomagnetic field maintains space-
craft (considered crucial in our new-space life) in a more or less safe environment. An
example is dated February 3rd 2022, when 40 spacecraft part of a payload of 49 Star-
link satellites SpaceX launched into orbit were damaged. The Starlink satellites are
originally placed in a brief parking orbit at approximately 210 km up, to be verified
114 11 What Next?
Fig. 11.1 Variation of the magnetic equator over two decades: 2000 (red curves), 2010 (black
curves), 2020 (blue curves). The vertical component of the field is plotted for the epoch 2010
for proper functioning through a ground-based check-out system. At the occasion of

this launch, the environmental Earth conditions were completely different from the
pre-launch previsions. Indeed, a moderate geomagnetic storm occurred, related to a
coronal mass ejection of the Sun on January 29th, presenting little danger to Earth.
The problem derives from the fact that the solar wind carrying charged particles
reached the Earth’s environment just when SpaceX planned its Starlink launch. The
solar wind causes the atmosphere to slightly expand, and the satellites are no longer
in a safe orbit. Encountering an important air resistance they are pulled back to the
ground. SpaceX tried to solve this by changing the flight mode for the satellites.
This safe-mode maneuver worked for only nine of the 49 launched satellites. The
others were lost, reentering the atmosphere. It is not just these satellites that have
had problems, though.
The weakness of the geomagnetic field in the South Atlantic Anomaly area has
undoubtedly affected spacecraft, sometimes leading to their loss. Moreover, comput-
ers and instruments on-board the International Space Station have also experienced
problems when passing through the region, during strong geomagnetic storm con-
ditions. Interestingly enough, these conditions allow astronauts to (not) perform
spacewalks.
Our modern life makes us magnetometer owners. Indeed, modern smartphones
incorporate many types of sensors, including magnetometers, used by many appli-
cations as a compass. Because the number of smartphones produced each year has
increased, the cost of sensors embedded in smartphones has dramatically dropped.
In 2021, the number of smartphone users in the world is around 3.8 billion, which
translates to 48.16% of the world’s population owning a smartphone. In total, the
number of people that own a smart and feature phone is 4.88 billion, making up
61.85% of the world’s population.1 The magnetic sensors inside the smartphones are
tri-axial Hall effect sensors.
1 Source: https://www.bankmycell.com/blog/how-many-phones-are-in-the-world.
11.2 Magnetic Fields Beyond the Earth 115
The magnetic fields are also crucial for our life nowadays. If Earth lost its mag-
netic field, there would be no magnetosphere. Without this protective shield, serious
effects might be experienced, even during weaker solar storms. So it is important to
understand rapid and less rapid changes of the geomagnetic field, and to monitor the
field’s evolution, as well as its declination component, across decades and centuries.
11.2 Magnetic Fields Beyond the Earth
To complete this picture of the Earth’s magnetic field variations, a very few con-
siderations about magnetic fields beyond the Earth are due; however, this is not the
focus of this writing. Different space missions carrying magnetometers offer us the
possibility to study other planets’ magnetic fields. A journey through the solar system
illustrates that not all planets move the needle in a comparable way. Magnetic fields
generated in the interior of terrestrial planets are common. They are present or have
been in the early evolution of a planet, as in the case of Mars. Earth, Mercury and
Ganymede are known to have largely dipolar internally generated magnetic fields,
while Venus and Mars apparently lack such internal fields. For Moon, Mars and
Mercury, as for the Earth, an earlier magnetic field signature exists, in the form of
remanently magnetised crust that formed up to billions of years ago. A special case is
Venus, as no information exists about an ancient magnetic field, because of missing
dedicated missions and because of the high surface temperatures (above the Curie
temperature, the magnetisation of the crust is not possible).
A recent study of the planetary magnetic fields has shown that most planets dis-
covered in other solar systems are unlikely to be as hospitable to life as Earth. In
searching for exoplanets the size of Earth we are more likely to find slowly rotating
planets locked to their host star. This can be seen as the Earth-Moon system, as the
Moon is locked to Earth, with the same side always facing the Earth. Magnetic fields
appear to play an essential role in making planets habitable. Plants and animals would
not survive without water on Earth. The strength of the Earth’s magnetic field helps
to maintain liquid water on the planetary surface, making it possible for life to flour-
ish. Earth-like planets, such as Venus and Mars have negligible magnetic fields and
do not support life. McIntyre et al. (2019) modelled the maximum magnetic dipole
moments and found that only Kepler-186f has a magnetic dipole moment larger than
the Earth’s. About half of the rocky exoplanets detected in the circumstellar habit-
able zone have a negligible magnetic dipole moment suggesting that strong magnetic
fields may be necessary to keep wet rocky exoplanets habitable.
***
But we are on Earth, and somehow we need to be thankful to its magnetic
field. The challenge of understanding the magnetic field variability is far from
complete, as it is the sequel of the fascinating history of its declination.
116 11 What Next?
References
McIntyre SRN, Lineweaver CH, Ireland MJ (2019) Planetary magnetism as a parameter in exoplanet
habitability. Mon Not R Astron Soc 485(3):3999–4012. https://doi.org/10.1093/mnras/stz667
Ropp G, Lesur V, Baerenzung J, Holschneider M (2020) Sequential modelling of the Earth’s
core magnetic field. Earth Planets Space 72(1):153. ISBN: 1880-5981. https://doi.org/10.1186/
s40623-020-01230-1

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SpringerBriefs in Earth Sciences

Briefs will be published as part of Springer’s eBook collection, with millions of

The Magnetic Declination

ISSN 2191-5369 ISSN 2191-5377 (electronic)

© The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2022

French National Magnetic Observatory, Chambon-la-Fort . Prior to the establishment

magnetism! Finally, I am deeply indebted to Ram Prasad Chandrasekar and Satish

Paris, France Mioara Mandea

Part II The Beginning of Magnetism

Part III Magnetic Declination–From the Age of Sail to the First

Part IV Magnetic Declination from the First Continuous

Part V Some Specific Features of the Magnetic Declination

10 Geomagnetic and Magnetic Poles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103

1.1 Back in Time

© The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2022 3

In order to trace the history of magnetic declination back in time, information is

1.2 Geomagnetic Field Components

In order to follow the developments in measuring and understanding the geomagnetic

Fig. 1.2 Components of the

current per meter (m) of conductor (1 T = 1 N · A−1 · m −1 = 1 kg · s−2 · A−1 ). A

1.3 Geomagnetic Field Sources

geomagnetic field continuously evolves as more magnetic field measurements are

1.4 Geomagnetism, Archaeomagnetism

Geomagnetism is one of the oldest of the geophysical sciences. As shown before,

Palaeomagnetism is the study of the Earth’s magnetic field preserved in dif-

causes of the disappearance of Neanderthals remain still debatable. The competition

Alexandrescu M, Courtillot V, Le Mouël JL (1997) High-resolution secular variation of the geomag-

2.1 From Floating Ideas to Floating Needles

1 I am confused translation from French.

Fig. 2.1 Magnetic anomaly

Fig. 2.2 A replica of the

2.2 The Greatest of Centuries

3.1 Empirical Theories

© The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2022 27

3.2 The First Observations

3.2.1 Magnetic Declination

Another source of information regarding the ancient declination values may be

3.2.2 Magnetic Dip

Fig. 3.4 Example of dip

3.3 Spatial and Temporal Variations

3.3.1 Spatial Variations

Mitchell (1932) analysed the journals of Christopher Columbus. He indicated that

3.3.2 Temporal Variations

3.4 Early Ideas About the Sources

Abbadie A (1890) Annales du Bureau des Longitudes. t. IV, 317–319

4.1 The First Maps Including Magnetic Information

4.1.1 Erhard Etzlaub – 1492 Map

4.1.2 Jean Guérard – 1631 Map

4.2 From Declination Measurements to Magnetic Elements

4.2.1 Cabot Map – 1544

4.2.2 Gerardus Mercator – 1569 Map

4.3 From One to Two Magnetic Poles

4.3.1 Guillaume Le Nautonier – 1603 Map

As indicated previously, Le Nautonier considered the Canary meridian as the geo-

4.4 The Earliest Magnetic Charts

4.4.1 Edmond Halley – 1700 Map

British government body formed in 1714 to administer a scheme of prizes to bestow

4.4.2 Charts and Atlases Before the Vector Field

© The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2022 63

5.1 London Series

5.2 Paris Series

5.3 Munich Series

6.1 The First Geomagnetic Observatories