Encyclopedia of Geomagnetism and Paleomagnetism

Understanding the process underlying the origin of Earth magnetic field is one of the greatest challenges left to classical Physics. Geomagnetism, being the oldest Earth science, studies the Earth’s magnetic field in its broadest sense.

The magnetic record left in rocks is studied in Paleomagnetism. Both fields have applications, pure and applied: in navigation, in the search for minerals and hydrocarbons, in dating rock sequences, and in unraveling past geologic movements such as plate motions they have contributed to a better understanding of the Earth.

Consisting of more than 300 articles written by ca 200 leading experts, this authoritative reference encompasses the entire fields of Geomagnetism and Paleomagnetism in a single volume. It describes in fine detail at an assessable level the state of the current knowledge and provides an up-to-date synthesis of the most basic concepts. As such, it will be an indispensable working tool not only for geophysicists and geophysics students but also for geologists, physicists, atmospheric and environmental scientists, and engineers.

• Biomagnetism
• Dynamo Theory
• Electromagnetic Induction
• Environmental magnetics
• Geomagnetism
• KLTcatalog
• MRWCat2006
• Paleomagnetism
• Rock magnetism

From the reviews:

"This new encyclopedia focuses mainly on the magnetic field of internal origin; however, some related articles on external sources are included. The editor’s goal is to cover the subject in fine detail at a level understandable to anyone with a general scientific education. The work includes 318 alphabetically arranged entries written by 226 specialists in the field. Each entry has a short bibliography and cross-references. … Summing Up: Recommended. Upper-level undergraduates through professionals/practitioners." (L. Joseph, CHOICE, Vol. 45 (6), 2008)

"This new Encyclopedia … present universal knowledge in the fields of Geomagnetism and Paleomagnetism in the broadest sense and in a single volume. … Written at a level accessible to anyone with a scientific education, this authoritative and speedy reference is … to all whose activities or studies are concerned with both fields. It is therefore a valuable working tool not only for geophysicists and geophysics students but also for physicists, geologists, geographers, atmospheric and environmental scientists and engineers." (Jozef Hus and Jean-Claude Jodogne, Physicalia Magazine, Vol. 30 (1), 2008)

"The Encyclopedia of Geomagnetism and Paleomagnetism is part of the Encyclopedia of Earth Sciences Series. … Numerous diagrams, pictures, tables, formulas, and mathematical equations provide clarity to the discussions. A detailed 44-page subject index and a series of color plates, mostly magnetic field maps, appear at the end of the volume. … this encyclopedia will be of particular interest to students and professionals in the earth sciences. This work is recommended for college, university, and larger public libraries." (Ignacio J. Ferrer-Vinent, ARBAonline, Vol. 39, 2008)

"This is major work whose aim is to provide a comprehensive review of all aspects of geomagnetism and palaeomagnetism as the subjects are currently understood. … the articles are well illustrated, well written and comprehensible to the reader. … I do believe that it is an indispensible library tool for graduates, academics and professionals alike involved in the application or study of geomagnetism and palaeomagnetism. For those already involved in a particular aspect of this broad discipline it provides a useful pathway to allied subjects." (Graeme Taylor, Geological Magazine, Vol. 145 (3), 2008)

"This volume claims to be the first single encyclopaedia to cover the combined fields of geomagnetism and paleomagnetism. … aims to provide a comprehensive and authoritative coverage of these complex and ever expanding subjects. … A very useful list of cross-references is provided at the end of each article, which makes it much easier to link together areas that are less familiar. … In the main this book is for those specialising in geophysics … . vital for academic libraries with geology and geophysics departments." (Helen Ashton, Reference Reviews, Vol. 22 (3), 2008)

• University of Leeds,  ,  

  David Gubbins

• University of Hawaii,  ,  

  Emilio Herrero-Bervera

David Gubbins is Research Professor of Earth Sciences in the School of Earth & Environment, University of Leeds, UK. He did his PhD on geomagnetic dynamos in Cambridge, supervised by Sir Edward Bullard (qv.) and has worked in the USA and in Cambridge before moving to Leeds in 1989. His work has included dynamo theory and its connection with the Earth's thermal history, modelling the Earth's magnetic field from historical measurements, and recently the interpretation of paleomagnetic data. He is a Fellow of the Royal Society and has been awarded the Gold Medal of the Royal Astronomical Society and the John Adam Fleming (qv.) Medal of the American Geophysical Union for original research and leadership in geomagnetism.

Emilio Herrero-Bervera is Research Professor of Geophysics at the School of Ocean Earth Science and Technology (SOEST) within the Hawaii Institute of Geophysics and Planetology (HIGP) of the University of Hawaii at Manoa, where he is the head of the Paleomagnetics and Petrofabrics Laboratory. During his career he has published over 90 papers in professional journals including Nature, JGR, EPSL, JVGR. He has worked in such diverse fields as volcanology, sedimentology, plate tectonics and has done field work on 5 continents

Policies and ethics