September 13 North Magnetic Pole

 

The last midnight sun here for this year

Glorious after-glow

And we arrived! Another incredibly notable day - we are the first vessel to reach the North Magnetic Pole in its current location 85 51.2’ N, 139 28.4’ E. This prompted lots more bubbles of course – it is quite a significant achievement. On top of that we have witnessed the last midnight sun at this point on the Earth for this year. 

Raspberry meringue as far as the eye can see

The scene outside is heavenly. The ice with its frosting of deep snow is a magical mixture of soft blue-white and palest pink where the sun picks out meringue-like peaks of snowy ice. The very newest ice rests like a thin slither of silver praline over the deep dark blue of the ocean. The temperature is -8 C (-14 C with wind chill factor). It is freezing - and breathtaking, literally - but absolutely magnificent. 

Wishing we could climb aboard for a spin

The ship's horn blasted and red flares were lit - it was an occasion to celebrate

We really celebrated the occasion with bubbles on the helicopter deck then spent the rest of the day ‘parked’ alongside a thick ice floe revelling in the dazzling beauty of this unique place. Some people went skiing way off into the distance, others went on long hikes while others simply wandered close to the ship marvelling at the sculptured surface of this humongous multifaceted ice sheet which caps Mother Earth. We were tethered to the ice floe so we drifted with it for well over a km - the winds and ocean currents make this a place of constant motion. Fascinating! 

The scientists were out taking samples

It is a huge ship when you stand up close

Lindsay freezing his ears off!

Out on the ice we were treated to cheese fondue with morels and black truffle

That thing swinging from the bow measures the thickness of the ice

A bunch of people braved the icy water to do a polar plunge - brave souls.

Just a little about the North Magnetic Pole. It is a ‘point’ on the surface of Earth's northern hemisphere at which the planet's magnetic field points vertically downward so if a magnetic compass needle were allowed to rotate in three dimensions (which mine can’t), it will point straight down. There is only one location where this occurs – somewhere near but not necessarily at the Geographic North Pole – in fact it is currently at 85 51.2’ N, 139 28.5’ E about 460km from the Geographic North Pole at the northern axis of earth's rotation. 

Plotting the movement of the Magnetic North Pole since it was first recorded by Sir James Clark Ross

The relative strengths of the magnetic 'blobs' determine the position of the magnetic poles

The fascinating thing is that the North Magnetic Pole has and continues to move over time according to changes that occur in the Earth's molten outer core.   Same too with the South Magnetic Pole which was first reached by Douglas Mawson on16 January 1909 with two others on Shackleton’s Nimrod Expedition to Antarctica. The North and South Magnetic Poles don't necessarily align through the centre of the earth. 

Tomorrow we sail on to reach the Geographic North Pole ETA unknown.