Members of the Geomagnetism, Paleomagnetism and Electromagnetism Section study the ancient and current magnetic field, from Earth’s core to other planets and to outer space, to gain an understanding of Earth’s structure, dynamics, and history and its relationship to other planets.

Geomagnetists measure the Earth’s magnetic field at present and use measurements taken over the past few centuries to devise theoretical models to explain its origin. Paleomagnetists have an eye to history: they interpret fossil magnetization in rocks and sediments from the Earth’s continents and oceans, which record the spreading of the seafloor, the wandering of the continents, and the many reversals of polarity that Earth’s magnetic field has undergone through time; similar data can be analyzed from extraterrestrial bodies. Electromagnetists employ changing magnetic fields for fundamental research purposes and for the benefit of mankind, by measuring the small electrical currents that can be induced in the crust and mantle and interpreting them in terms of electrical conductivity.