North Pole South Pole

In this engaging narrative, Gillian Turner describes how scientists struggled for centuries to understand Earth’s magnetism—from ancient Greeks fascinated with magnetised rocks to modern geophysicists who finally discovered the truth—including the almost unbelievable finding that every million years or so, Earth’s magnetic field does a complete flip.

North Pole, South Pole provides an extraordinary window into science and the brilliance of the human mind. For Turner, it is the culmination of a dream. ‘It’s hard to imagine a more exciting science story,’ she says. ‘Ever since I first became interested in Earth’s magnetic field, I’ve thought it would make a terrific book – and not just for people interested in science. It’s really a story about human curiosity, and people obsessed with cracking a mystery.’

M.E. (Ted) Evans, Professor Emeritus, Department of Physics, University of Alberta, comments, "This book is a compelling narrative of the two-thousand-year scientific struggle to unlock the innermost secrets of the cosmic speck of dust we call home. It is engagingly written in a lively style accessible to all."

North Pole, South Pole: The Epic Quest to Solve the Great Mystery of Earth’s Magnetism, by Gillian Turner is available in bookshops and online from Awa Press (New Zealand) and The Experiment (USA).