Magnetic North Pole Movement by Decade

Magnetic North Pole Movement (1900-2024)

Average Speed Color Key

Slow (0-5 mi/year)

Medium (5-15 mi/year)

Fast (15-25 mi/year)

Very Fast (25+ mi/year)

Decade	Miles/Year	Total Miles	Km/Year	Total Km	RF/Microwave Factor
1900s	2.62	23.56	4.21	37.91	Pre-wireless / Experimental
1910s	4.04	36.40	6.51	58.58	Wireless telegraphy, AM radio begins
1920s	6.97	62.77	11.22	101.02	AM radio broadcasting boom
1930s	7.53	67.78	12.12	109.08	AM expansion, FM invented (1933)
1940s	9.36	84.23	15.06	135.56	WWII radar networks, LORAN-A (1942), 0G car phones debut (1946), military RF
1950s*	5.28	47.50	8.49	76.44	TV boom, AT&T Long Lines, DEW Line (1957), WSR-57 weather radars (1957), jet age (aircraft + airport radar), LORAN-C (1957), Soviet radars
1960s*	4.22	37.94	6.78	61.06	Weather satellites (TIROS 1960), Telstar (1962), FM expansion, airport radar
1970s	7.06	63.51	11.36	102.21	GOES (1975), Meteosat (1977), WSR-74 radars (1974), Soviet DUGA radar (1976), GPS development (1978), global radar network expansion, microwave networks, 0G car phones (widespread), airport radar
1980s	8.61	77.45	13.85	124.64	1G analog cellular networks begin, Eutelsat (1983), SES (1988), GLONASS (1982), international Doppler networks, weather satellite expansion, airport radar
1990s	20.27	182.41	32.62	293.55	NEXRAD (WSR-88D) deployment (1992-1997), CINRAD deployment (1996+), GPS/GLONASS fully operational (1995), global Doppler networks, 2G digital cellular explosion, mobile towers, DirecTV (1994), DISH (1996), Iridium (1998), Globalstar (1998), Eutelsat/SES expansion
2000s	33.85	304.62	54.47	490.23	3G networks, smartphones begin, BeiDou (2000), global Doppler network completion, CINRAD expansion, satellite TV/internet expansion
2010s	32.80	295.24	52.79	475.15	4G/LTE dominance, IoT explosion, Galileo operational (2016), BeiDou expansion, global radar network modernization, Viasat/Eutelsat/SES expansion, global rollouts
2020s*	25.35	101.40	40.80	163.18	5G rollout, BeiDou global completion (2020), LEO constellations (Starlink, OneWeb), satellite internet (Viasat, Eutelsat, SES, Telesat), global

Decade

Miles/Year

Total Miles

Km/Year

Total Km

RF/Microwave Factor

1900s

2.62

23.56

4.21

37.91

Pre-wireless / Experimental

1910s

4.04

36.40

6.51

58.58

Wireless telegraphy, AM radio begins

1920s

6.97

62.77

11.22

101.02

AM radio broadcasting boom

1930s

7.53

67.78

12.12

109.08

AM expansion, FM invented (1933)

1940s

9.36

84.23

15.06

135.56

WWII radar networks, LORAN-A (1942), 0G car phones debut (1946), military RF

1950s*

5.28

47.50

8.49

76.44

TV boom, AT&T Long Lines, DEW Line (1957), WSR-57 weather radars (1957), jet age (aircraft + airport radar), LORAN-C (1957), Soviet radars

1960s*

4.22

37.94

6.78

61.06

Weather satellites (TIROS 1960), Telstar (1962), FM expansion, airport radar

1970s

7.06

63.51

11.36

102.21

GOES (1975), Meteosat (1977), WSR-74 radars (1974), Soviet DUGA radar (1976), GPS development (1978), global radar network expansion, microwave networks, 0G car phones (widespread), airport radar

1980s

8.61

77.45

13.85

124.64

1G analog cellular networks begin, Eutelsat (1983), SES (1988), GLONASS (1982), international Doppler networks, weather satellite expansion, airport radar

1990s

20.27

182.41

32.62

293.55

NEXRAD (WSR-88D) deployment (1992-1997), CINRAD deployment (1996+), GPS/GLONASS fully operational (1995), global Doppler networks, 2G digital cellular explosion, mobile towers, DirecTV (1994), DISH (1996), Iridium (1998), Globalstar (1998), Eutelsat/SES expansion

2000s

33.85

304.62

54.47

490.23

3G networks, smartphones begin, BeiDou (2000), global Doppler network completion, CINRAD expansion, satellite TV/internet expansion

2010s

32.80

295.24

52.79

475.15

4G/LTE dominance, IoT explosion, Galileo operational (2016), BeiDou expansion, global radar network modernization, Viasat/Eutelsat/SES expansion, global rollouts

2020s*

25.35

101.40

40.80

163.18

5G rollout, BeiDou global completion (2020), LEO constellations (Starlink, OneWeb), satellite internet (Viasat, Eutelsat, SES, Telesat), global

* 2020s is a partial decade (2020-2024)

* 1950s-1960s figures are affected by DGRF model recalibration and measurement methodology changes, not reflecting actual deceleration.

RF Technology Correlation

The magnetic north pole's acceleration pattern shows strong correlation with the deployment of radio frequency (RF) and microwave technologies throughout the 20th century:

1910s: Acceleration begins as wireless telegraphy and AM radio emerge
1920s-1940s: Steady acceleration matches radio broadcasting and radar expansion
1990s-2020s: Exponential acceleration corresponds with digital cellular networks, WiFi, and 5G

Note: The 1950s-1960s apparent slowdown is a measurement artifact from DGRF model recalibration, not a real deceleration.

Key Findings

Slowest decade: 1900s at 2.62 miles/year (4.21 km/year)
Fastest decade: 2000s at 33.85 miles/year (54.47 km/year)
Acceleration factor: 12.9x faster in 2000s compared to 1900s

Acceleration Trend

1900-1949 average: 6.11 miles/year (9.83 km/year)
1950-1999 average: 9.08 miles/year (14.62 km/year)
2000-2024 average: 30.67 miles/year (49.35 km/year)

Data source: NOAA IGRF (International Geomagnetic Reference Field) magnetic north pole coordinates. Distances calculated using Haversine formula between consecutive yearly positions. RF/Microwave technology timeline compiled to show correlation with pole acceleration patterns.