At its peak around 40,977 years ago, Earth’s protective magnetic bubble shrank dramatically – from its normal extent of 8-11 Earth radii (51,000-70,000 km) to just 2.43 Earth radii (15,498 km).

During a brief but dramatic chapter in Earth's history about 41,000 years ago, the planet’s magnetic field nearly collapsed. What followed was a cascade of environmental and biological changes ...

The Earth's magnetic field is essential to life as we know it. But it’s something we can never see – or hear, until now. In a recent study released on Oct. 10 by the European Space Agency ...

Changes in the Earth's global magnetic field over six months in 2014 as measured by the European Space Agency's three-satellite Swarm constellation. The left map shows the average magnetic field ...

Then, Earth’s core was liquid, not solid. The liquid inner core churned as it released heat into the cooler mantle, moving molten iron around the core and enabling Earth’s magnetic field to exist.

However, Earth’s magnetic field almost collapsed 591 million years ago, and this change, paradoxically, may have played a pivotal role in the blossoming of complex life, new research has found.

The Earth’s magnetic field is vital for life – without it, the Sun’s radiation would sterilize the planet. But a new study suggests we wouldn’t be here at all if that magnetic field hadn ...

The oldest firm age yet for Earth's magnetic field suggests that it developed before a solid planetary core, 3.7 billion years ago. When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an ...

Field flips Scientists map and track the overall shape and orientation of the Earth's magnetic field using local measurements of the field's orientation and magnitude and, more recently, models ...