Yes, it is, actually. Solar radiation is, by definition, the bursts of winds of fire from the sun and also exploding, close-by stars. These winds are made up of billions of tons of electricity-charged particles that, in some cases, have the same mass as Mount Everest. Often, Earth is directly in their path.

            What many of us call The Northern and Southern Lights happen to be the solar winds flowing harmlessly over our earth with help from the magnetic field. The solar particles trapped in the field and are being dragged through the atmosphere toward the Poles. If it weren’t for the magnetic field, the winds would blow away our atmosphere and Earth would become a dead planet, just like Mars.

            There are two ways to measure the magnetic field. The simplest way is with magnets; specifically ones that are mounted and are able to move around freely while still pointing to magnetic north. Magnets are perfect for giving the direction and strength of the field. For example, if you move it and it is slow to come back, it shows that the field is weak, and vice versa. The second way is with the melting and re-cooling of rocks and clay. The same instance of rocks cooling after it melting is resembled in pottery

            Scientists and archaeologists are convinced that pottery acts like a magnetic tape recorder; it records the magnetic field when it’s first made. Clay contains iron based minerals called magnetite; the same mineral found in volcanic rock. At a microscopic level, viewers can see small distinct regions resembling small magnets all pointing in the same direction. But in raw clay, each region is pointing in a different direction, so they don’t create an overall magnetic field until the pot is fired. The intense heat of the kiln erases all the magnetic regions and as the pot cools, new regions form. As they reform, they align with Earth’s current, magnetic field. Like compass needles, they’re all pointing the same direction.

Most scientists are asking themselves, can earth eventually end up like Mars, the planet with no atmosphere? This is the ultimate consequence of what many of us mistake ‘global warming’ for. So, what exactly causes ‘global warming’? The answer comes with understanding how Mars actually lost its atmosphere, and yes it did have an atmosphere at one point. That is, about 4 billion years ago.

            In previous years, satellites have uncovered the craters of Argyre and Hellos. However, they also uncovered more; the fact that mars used to have a magnetic field. Scientists believe that these meteorites hit Mars’ surface so hard, they should’ve melted. Scientists were hopeful with this information and also believe that if molten rock cools in a strong magnetic field, it should be somewhat magnetic. As scientists looked to Mars for more answers, they uncovered something that changed the future: The meteorites did not contain a single trace of magnetism. With this, scientists went on to believe that the meteorites hit Mars after it lost its magnetic field and they concluded that Mars’ atmosphere was not blown away from any force but the solar winds. Once again, could the same happen to earth? If our magnetic field disappeared would we still be safe? Yes it could happen, yes it might just happen, yes it’s on its way, and no, we are not safe.

            The magnetic field has changed dramatically in the last few centuries. There have been gentle changes in the last 1200 years but around 300 years ago, there was a rapid fall of strength in the magnetic field. With this rate of change, the magnetic field may just disappear.

            Scientists are trying to create a model of a self-sustaining electro magnetic dynamo, because that’s what the earth is. Scientists also have a theory that the core of the earth generates the magnetic field. It’s obvious that there is a close relationship between magnetism and electricity because electric currents create magnetic fields. So if electric currents create the field, what creates the electric currents? The magnetic field. It is like a big cycle. The key to this cycle is the liquid metal in the core never stops moving.

Searching for clues on what’s happening deep inside our planet, scientists direct their attention on a chain of volcanic islands in the middle of the Pacific; Hawaii. Here, there’s a record of the Earths magnetic field that stretches back millions of years; a record of a series of spectacular magnetic mayhems. Mount Kilauea keeps erupting and scientists need to sample the lava every now and then to keep an eye on the volcano. However, some geophysicists are there for separate reasons; the lava tells them about the magnetic field. It all begins when the lava hits the water and cools, which records the magnetic field. Because the volcano keeps erupting continually over the years, each layer of the islands it has created is a record of the fields of those eruptions.

            50 years ago, when scientists began to study the older layers, they made a strange discovery. Not only do the rocks record the strength of the field, but they also record the direction. Today’s magnetic field points to magnetic north, but in this discovery scientists found that the field had once in fact pointed to magnetic south. This indicates that the field and the flow of the core, at some point 780,000 years ago, must have flipped a whole 180 degrees. Throughout further discoveries, scientists discovered that previously, on average a flip would happen every 200,000 years. This means that we’re sort of overdue for a flip. With even further research in older layers, geophysicists have found that as the earth is getting ready for a flip, the field becomes weaker.