The Greenwich Compasses, about to point out something unusual in over 300 years

Compbades from Greenwich District, London (United Kingdom) will show the true north over the next two weeks. This coincidence will occur for the first time in 360 years, announced Friday the British Geological Survey (BGS) in a statement.

For hundreds of years, compbades located in British territory are oriented to the west of the geographic north due to the displacement of the magnetic north pole of the Earth. According to experts, the invisible line that connects the north and south magnetic poles, called agony, moves from west to east at a speed of about 20 kilometers per year. For the month of September, the Greenwich compbad will indicate the true north.

"This is the first time since the creation of the observatory that geographic and geomagnetic coordinate systems coincide at this location," said BGS researcher Ciaran Beggan.

The Royal Observatory of Greenwich was created in 1676 and houses since 1839 the specialized magnetic observatory which carried out continuous measurements from 1840. In 1926, the instruments were transferred to Abinger, in Surrey, for the electrified railway lines had made it impossible to measure the magnetic field.

Whatever the case may be, in the next two weeks there will be a unique event: for the first time since the creation of the observatory, geographic and geomagnetic coordinate systems will coincide at this location. And no, zero decline will not have an impact on people's daily lives.

A similar coincidence occurred at the end of the 17th century, when the Royal Observatory of Greenwich was founded and the compbad of the place also indicated the geographical north.

"The agonist will continue to cross the UK for the next 15 to 20 years and by 2040, all compbades will likely be directed to the true north east," said Beggan.

For experts, it is now impossible to predict the evolution of the magnetic field over the next centuries or decades. It is therefore possible that the compbades are oriented to the east of the geographic north for another 360 years.