[meteorite-list] WOW magnetic south?

From: Pierre Rochette <rochette_at_meteoritecentral.com>
Date: Thu Apr 22 10:27:51 2004
Message-ID: <f05210612bbe12a8ab1f4_at_[10.12.4.68]>

Dear list

following Rob message, I would say some knowledge exists on the core
behavior and the reversal processes. You can see more at the adress
below, including a movie of a simulated reversal.
http://www.psc.edu/science/Glatzmaier/glatzmaier.html

The uneasy thing to understand in the reversing dynamo is that you do
not have to reverse the sense of liquid flow to reverse the field:
the same flow pattern can sustain both sense of magnetic field (and
coupled electric currents). Second usual misconception is that the
axial rotation part (constant distance to Earth center) of the flow
does not create any field, it is just the vertical flow (due to heat
exchange) that matters, although this flow is "organized" through
Coriolis force by the Earth rotation.

-- 
Pierre

Received on Wed 19 Nov 2003 09:26:32 AM PST