Temporal Variations of geomagnetic field

• The variations in B (Earth magnetic field) with time over the

periods ranging from seconds to millions of years have a profound
effect on how magnetic surveys are carried out, on the subtraction
of the main field from the measured field to leave the anomaly,
and in the interpretation of the resulting anomalies. These
variations are described, starting with variations of short time-
space and ending with those of significance over geological time.
• Secular Variations (space )
• Diurnal Variations (Time)
• Magnetic Storms
• Micro pulsations
• a) Diurnal variations are caused by the magnetic effect of
a system of electric currents in the ionosphere. These
variations arise from the rotation of the earth with respect
to the sun. The 'solar wind' of charged particles emanating
from the sun, even under normal or 'quiet sun' conditions,
tends to distort the outer regions of the earth's magnetic
field.
• The daily rotation of the earth within this sun-referenced
distortion leads to ionosphere currents on the day-side of
the planet and a consequential daily cycle of variation in B
that usually has an amplitude of less than about 50 NT.
The main variation occurs towards local noon when peaks
are observed in mid-latitudes and troughs near the
magnetic equator.
• (b) Micro pulsations occur on a much shorter time scale,
commonly over fraction of seconds to a few minutes. The exact
shape of a recorded sequence of micropulsations may change
from place to place over a few tens of kilometers and effective
elimination of such short-term geomagnetic variations set a limit
to the accuracy with which spatially-related variations in
magnetic field may be mapped. These temporal variations can be
considered insignificant in ground magnetic surveys.

• (c) Magnetic storms are caused by exceptional solar activity,

usually correlated with sunspot activity. Violent variations of
several hundred of nT may start quite suddenly and continue for
periods in excess of 24 hours. Their effect is particularly felt in the
auroral zones around the earth's magnetic poles. The onset of
the storm is sudden and violent variations in B may be seen over
several tens of hours. Return to ‘normal field conditions may take
several days.
• (d) Secular variation. Variations on a much longer time-scale
hundreds of years – are well documented from historical data
and the accurate magnetic observatory records of more recent
decades. The main manifestation of secular variation globally is
changes in size and position of the departures from a simple
dipolar field over years and decades. The effects of these
changes at a given locality are predictable with a fair degree of
accuracy for periods of five to ten years into the future. Such
predictions are updated as more recent magnetic observatory
and earth satellite recordings become available.
• From the point of view of magnetic anomaly mapping, secular
variations become important when surveys of adjacent or
overlapping areas carried out several years apart are to be
compared or merged together.
• When observing these variations for a short period of time
(daily) it could be seen that they are periodic, but periods,
amplitudes and phases are extremely diverse.

• But in case of long-term elements observations (several years)

with annual means determination, it’s easy to estimate that
annual means also change but in monotonous way, and
periodicity occurs only in a very long-termed observations
(about decades and hundreds of years).
 The Earth’s geomagnetic field
• The Earth’s magnetic field is more complicated than a
simple dipole. It consists of:
Main field
• This approximates to a non-geocentric dipole inclined
to the Earth’s spin axis. It can be modelled as polar
and equatorial dipoles. A simple dipole is a good
approximation for 90% of the Earth’s field. The
remainder can be modelled as dipoles distributed
around the core/mantle boundary.
 Modelling the Earth’s magnetic field with dipoles

The origin of the Earth’s field is known to be 99% internal and to be

generated by convection in the liquid outer core, which drives
electric currents. It cannot be due to magnetised rocks because it
must be deep, and rocks lose all magnetisation above the Curie
temperature.

The Curie temperature for magnetite is 578°C, whereas the

temperature of the core is probably ~ 5,000°C.
Over the surface of the earth is generated within itself by the action Dynamo
processes taking place in the earth’s outer core
The Earth’s magnetic field is generated by electric currents in the outer liquid core,
which is Mixture of iron & nickel, both good electrical conductiors
 When the electrically conductive metal moves in the magnetic field, a new
magnetic field is generated which may amplify the existing field
The magnetic source is through to be a self-existed dynamo manner caused by
convection
Main field over 99% is due to source inside the earth in liquid outer core
 The external magnetic field

• This accounts for the other 1% of the Earth’s field. It is caused

by electric currents in ionized layers of the outer atmosphere.
It is very variable, and has an 11-year periodicity which
corresponds to sunspot activity. There is a diurnal periodicity
of up to 30 γ, which varies with latitude and season because
of the effect of the sun on the ionosphere.
• There is a monthly variation of up to 2 γ which is the effect of
the moon on the ionosphere. Superimposed on this are micro
pulsations which are seemingly random changes with
variable amplitude, typically lasting for short periods of time.
• Magnetic storms are random fluctuations caused by solar
ionospheric interactions as sunspots are rotated towards and
away from the Earth. They may last a few days and have
amplitudes of up to 1,000 γ within 60° of the equator. They are
more frequent and of higher amplitude closer to the poles, e.g.,
in the auroral zone. The possibility of magnetic storms must be
taken into consideration in exploration near the poles, e.g., in
Alaska.
local anomalies
• These are caused by magnetic bodies in the crust, where the
temperature is higher than the Curie temperature. These bodies
are the targets of magnetic surveying.
The geomagnetic field of the Earth:
 The main field (internal origin) 99%
 A small field (external origin)
 Very small field (near surface crust)
 The external field ~ electric currents in the ionized layers of the upper
 atmosphere
Time variations of the external field :
1) T=11 years ~ sunspot activity
2) T=24 h, 30nT ~ solar diurnal variations and solar wind
3) T=25 h, 2nT ~ Lunar variations
(moon-ionosphere interactions )
4) Transient disturbances 1000nT ~ Magnetic storms, Aurora ~ sunspot
activity
Magnetic storms affect the magnetic prospecting.
 External Field
Magnetic Storms & Space Weather
•• The
  internal component of the Earth’s magnetic field

• Spatial variation of internal magnetic field - simplified form

• Consider a magnetic dipole with a dipole moment = M.

At a point [r, θ] we can show that the
radial and azimuthal components of
the magnetic field are given by:

and

• where M is the dipole moment, a measure of the strength of the

magnetic field.
•• Can
  calculate how the inclination, I, varies with latitude (θ)
• tan I==2tan

• Total magnetic strength is given by F( which reduces to

• F(r, )= +1
 External component of the Earth’s magnetic field
• The external component of the magnetic field is generated in the
atmosphere and magnetosphere.
• The solar wind (a stream of H and He ions) is deflected by the Earths internal
magnetic field to create the magnetosphere.
• The interactions between the solar wind and the Earth’s magnetic field are
very complex.
• Temporal changes in the solar wind, due to sunspots, solar flares and coronal
mass ejections can produce a change in the magnetic field at the surface of
the Earth.
• When the solar wind is in a steady state, the Earth’s magnetic field shows a
daily variation that is due to the Earth turning within the current systems of
the magnetosphere and ionosphere. The typical variation is called the solar
quiet day variation (Sq). The amplitude is typical 10-20 nT and varies with
latitude. Clearly seen in time series above.

• When the solar wind is active, the Earth’s magnetic field is said to be
disturbed. Magnetic storms occur when the current systems change over a
period of several days and the field at the Earth’s surface can change by
100’s of nanotesla. These changes are largest beneath major ionospheric
current systems. A small substorm can be seen in the middle of the time
series plotted above.
• Smaller magnetic field disturbances are classified as substorms and bays
and have timescales of several hours.
• Solar activity is characterized by an 11 year cycle and we are currently in a
minimum.
• Maximum solar activity results in high levels of activity in the Earth’s
external magnetic field and frequent magnetic storms and strong auroral
displays.
• From 50-1500 km above the Earth’s surface is the ionosphere, a
region of plasma with high electrical conductivity.
• Changing magnetic fields from the magnetosphere can induce
large electric currents in the ionosphere.
• Changes in these currents produce large changes in the
magnetic field measured at the Earth’s surface.
 Magnetic Susceptibility

• The intensity of magnetization, I, is related to the strength of the

inducing magnetic field, H, through a constant of proportionality, k,
known as the magnetic susceptibility.

• The magnetic susceptibility is a unitless constant that is determined

by the physical properties of the magnetic material. It can take on
either positive or negative values.

• Positive values imply that the induced magnetic field, I, is in the same
direction as the inducing field, H. Negative values imply that the
induced magnetic field is in the opposite direction as the inducing
field.
• In magnetic prospecting, the susceptibility is the fundamental
material property whose spatial distribution we are attempting to
determine.
 Susceptibilities of various rocks and minerals are shown below
• Material Susceptibility x 10^3 (SI)*
• Air ~0
• Quartz -0.01
• Rock Salt -0.01
• Calcite -0.001 - 0.01
• Sphalerite 0.4
• Pyrite 0.05 -5
• Hematite 0.5 - 35
• Ilmenite 300 - 3500
• Magnetite 1200 - 19,200
• Limestones 0-3
• Sandstones 0 - 20
• Shales 0.01 - 15
• Schist 0.3 - 3
• Gneiss 0.1 - 25
• Slate 0 - 35
• Granite 0 - 50
• Gabbro 1 - 90
• Basalt 0.2 - 175
• Peridotite 90 - 200
 Comparison of the Earth’s gravitational
Gravitational
Overall field geometry
Direction
Spatial variations
Temporal variations with
internal origin
Temporal variations with
external origin
Latitude variation
in Edmonton
Elevation variation
field and magnetic
Magneticfields
Approximate spherical
symmetry
g varies as 1/r2
Down, by definition
978,000 mgal at Equator
983,000 mgal at poles
GRS formula simple
and accounts for variation
of g with latitude
Signal produced by plate
motion and mantle
convection
Tidal signals (< 0.5 mgal)
~ 1 mgal km-1
~ 0.3 mgal m-1
field
80% dipole
B varies as 1/r3
Inclination varies from
+90° to –90 °
25,000 nT at Equator
61,000 nT at high latitude
IGRF is a complex series of
spherical harmonics
Secular variation, jerks,
westward drift and
north-south field reversals
Poles moving at ~ 15 km/yr
Diurnal Sq variation (50 nT)
Magnetic storms (100-
1000nT)
11 year sunspot cycle
~3 nT km-1
~ 0.03 nT m-1
 Geocentric axial Dipole
─ Axis inclined 11.5 degrees to the geographical pole .

Best-fit dipole currently 11.5° from geographic north pole But this has varied
with time.
 Main elements of the Earth magnetic Field

Z = vertical component
(positive pointing downward)
X = horizontal component
(pointing to geographic North)
Y = horizontal component
(pointing to geographic East)
H = total horizontal component
I = inclination
D = declination,
F = total field strength

Declination: angle between the geomagnetic north and geographic north.

D=Tan⁻¹Y/X

Inclination: angle between the geomagnetic field and horizontal I=Tan⁻¹Z/H

Intensity: magnetic field strength (units: Tesla,), F= √(X2 + Y2 + Z2)
Description of the direction of the
magnetic field