科学家利用欧洲空间局卫星数据发现，位于地表约2200公里以下的地球熔融外核在2010年发生了流向反转 [1]。根据太平洋下方的观测数据，熔融物质从微弱的向西流转变为强劲的向东流 [1]。这一发现令研究人员困惑，反转的确切原因仍未明确 [1]。
爱丁堡大学地球科学学院的研究团队分析了1997年至2025年期间欧洲空间局Swarm卫星的磁场测量数据，这些卫星配备高精度磁力计，于2013年发射升空 [1]。研究表明，这一反转可能是地球深部自然循环的组成部分 [1]。值得注意的是，反转强度自2020年后已开始减弱 [1]。研究人员Frederik Dahl Madsen指出："流动反转引发了关于地球深部行为的新问题" [1]。该研究已发表在《地球深部研究期刊》2026年第2卷 [1]。
Scientists using satellite data from the European Space Agency have discovered a dramatic shift in Earth's molten outer core beneath the Pacific Ocean.[1] In 2010, the flow of molten material reversed direction, changing from a weak westward current to a strong eastward flow.[1] The cause of this reversal remains unexplained, though researchers suggest it may be part of a natural deep-Earth cycle.[1]
The research, conducted by teams at the University of Edinburgh's School of Earth Sciences and supported by ESA, analyzed measurements spanning from 1997 to 2025 using the Swarm satellite constellation, which was launched in 2013 and equipped with high-precision magnetometers.[1] The outer core is located approximately 2,200 kilometers below Earth's surface.[1] According to Frederik Dahl Madsen, a researcher involved in the study, "the flow reversal has raised new questions about how Earth's deep interior behaves."[1] The findings, published in Deep Earth Research in 2026, indicate that the intensity of the reversal has been weakening since 2020.[1] Scientists also noted that the magnetic field reversal coincided in time with changes in the behavior of Earth's inner core.[1]