The North Pole is a geographic pole at 90° North, while the North Magnetic Pole is based on the magnetosphere and constantly changing. The magnetic field creates the aurora and the pole’s location is moving towards Siberia. Magnetic compasses point to the magnetic North Pole, but GPS is a better tool for navigation.
The difference between the North Pole and the North Magnetic Pole is that the former is a geographic pole with a stationary position at 90° North. This geographic North Pole, also known as true north, is the northernmost fixed point on earth from which all points lie south. The magnetic pole is not based on true north, but on the magnetosphere of the planet. It is hundreds of miles (kilometers) from true north, with its exact location constantly changing.
Roughly analogous to a magnet, the Earth generates a magnetosphere across its north and south magnetic poles. The magnetosphere forms a large charged field around the earth, with flattened funnels or cusps at each pole. The Magnetic North Pole marks the point where the magnetic field heads down towards the Earth at a 90° angle, with respect to the surface. As particles from the solar wind blast toward the earth, most of it is deflected by the magnetosphere. Some solar particles, however, glide into the cusp of the pole, creating the aurora or northern lights over Canada.
As the magnetic field shifts, the exact location of the magnetic North Pole migrates. It is moving so fast that in 2005 the BBC reported that some scientists predicted it would end up over Siberia by 2055. Other scientists believe that the migration recorded to date could be part of an oscillation pattern that will eventually cause the pole to Canada.
The position of the magnetic North Pole was first calculated and recorded in 1831. By 1904, it had moved approximately 31 miles (50 km). The Geological Survey of Canada determined its mean location in 2001 at 81.3° North, by 110.8° West, moving northwest at a rate of about 25 miles (40 km) per year.
Magnetic compasses point to the magnetic North Pole relative to true north. This isn’t of great concern to most people, but those traveling to the Arctic regions need to take into account the location of the Magnetic North Pole for an accurate calculation of true location. If possible, a better tool for navigation would be a global positioning system (GPS).
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