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A Phenomenological Model for Reversals of the Geomagnetic Field

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Part of the book series: NATO ASI Series ((ASIC,volume 261))

Abstract

We consider a system made by N point interacting dipoles, each of them having a finite lifetime. A renewal process for the dipoles gives the time evolution of the system. When the number N of dipoles is low, and for a wide range of the coupling between the dipoles, we observe sudden transitions or excursions between two polarised states. Thus our system provides artificial polarity time-scales which can be compared with the geomagnetic one. It is also possible, by locating the dipoles within a core and calculating the magnetic field produced, to obtain a simple phenomenological modelling of the geomagnetic field. In this paper we discuss first the characteristics and the time evolution of the generator, then we briefly compare in a qualitative way the modelled field with the geomagnetic one.

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References

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© 1989 Kluwer Academic Publishers

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Mazaud, A., Laj, C., Bard, E. (1989). A Phenomenological Model for Reversals of the Geomagnetic Field. In: Lowes, F.J., Collinson, D.W., Parry, J.H., Runcorn, S.K., Tozer, D.C., Soward, A. (eds) Geomagnetism and Palaeomagnetism. NATO ASI Series, vol 261. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-009-0905-2_14

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-009-0905-2_14

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Dordrecht

  • Print ISBN: 978-94-010-6896-3

  • Online ISBN: 978-94-009-0905-2

  • eBook Packages: Springer Book Archive

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