360年来第一次，罗盘确实是正确的

360年来第一次，有些罗盘确实是正确的

If you try walking to the North Pole for some strange and ill-considered reason, you will be let down badly by your compass.

如果你因为某种奇怪的、考虑不周的原因试图走到北极，你将会被你的指南针严重地辜负。

It's not as simple as following the "N" on the dial until you reach Santa's workshop.

在你到达圣诞老人的工作间之前，这并不像按下拨号盘上的“N”那么简单。

The Earth is one big magnet - which is how little magnets, like those in a compass, dial into its poles. (Photo: ByGurzoglu/Shutterstock)

Following the arrow would, in fact, take you to Ellesmere Island — the most northerly settlement in Canada. At more than 500 miles from the North Pole, you would still have a ways to go.

事实上，顺着箭头走，你就会到达埃尔斯米尔岛——加拿大最北的殖民地。在离北极500多英里的地方，你还有很长的路要走。

Just explain to the Uber driver that you were following magnetic north. You should have been locked into true north.

只要向优步司机解释一下，你在跟踪磁极北。你应该被困在真正的北方。

Yes, there are two norths. As you might guess, magnetic north abides by the planet's natural, ever-shifting magnetism. True north on the other hand, as indicated on maps by lines of longitude, are determined by the planet's rotation on its access. A reliable navigator, true north is where all those longitudinal lines converge — dead in the center of the Arctic Sea.

是的，有两个北方。正如你可能猜到的，地磁北极遵循着地球自然的、不断变化的磁场。另一方面，如地图上的经度线所示，真北是由行星进入地球时的自转决定的。一个可靠的航海家，真正的北方是所有这些纵线交汇的地方——死在北冰洋的中心。

The margin of error between the two norths is called declination. And for the last 360 years, there's always been a difference of varying sizes.

北方和北方之间的误差幅度称为赤纬。在过去的360年里，一直存在着大小不一的差异。

Until now.

直到现在。

Over the next couple of weeks, the compass needle will reach a perfect alignment with true north — as long as you're standing in Greenwich, London, where the Eastern and Western hemispheres meet.

在接下来的几周里，只要你站在伦敦格林尼治，也就是东西半球交汇的地方，指南针的指针就会与真北完美地对齐。

The last time the line of zero declination, known as the agonic, met up with magnetic north was about 360 years ago.

上一次零偏斜线，也就是我们所知的agonic，与地磁北极相遇是在360年前。

Since then, as The Guardian notes, compass needles have pointed west of true north, toward the aforementioned Ellesmere Island. But in September, all compasses at The Royal Observatory in Greenwich, will point to true north.

从那时起，正如《卫报》所指出的，罗盘指针指向了正北以西的埃尔斯米尔岛。但在9月，格林威治皇家天文台的所有罗盘都指向正北。

"At some point in September, the agonic will meet zero longitude at Greenwich," Ciaran Beggan, a scientist at the Lyell Centre in Edinburgh, tells the newspaper. "This marks the first time since the observatory's creation that the geographic and geomagnetic coordinate systems have coincided at this location."

爱丁堡莱尔中心的科学家Ciaran Beggan告诉《泰晤士报》:“在9月的某个时候，agonic将在格林尼治遇到零经度。”“这标志着自天文台成立以来，地理和地磁坐标系首次在这个位置重合。”

"The agonic will continue to pass across the UK over the next 15 to 20 years."

“未来15年至20年，亚贡尼克号将继续在英国各地通行。”

The Royal Observatory Greenwich is home to Greenwich Mean time, as well as the Prime Meridian. (Photo: GMaple Design/Shutterstock)

Think of it as that solitary, triumphant moment when a broken clock gives you exactly the right time. We knew you could do it. After that, compasses will return to being wrong — this time pointing east of true north.

当一个坏掉的时钟给你准确的时间时，把它想成一个孤独的、胜利的时刻。我们就知道你能做到，在那之后，罗盘又会回到错误的方向——这次是指向正北偏东的方向。

This rare agreement between lines of longitude and compasses isn't expected to impact humans beyond the neat-o factor. The real problem lies in magnetic north's wandering ways.

经度线和圆规之间罕见的一致性预计不会对人类造成超出neat-o因素的影响。真正的问题在于磁极的漂移。

Of course, it never stands still, but rather shifts constantly thanks to the roiling inferno of molten nickel and iron at the Earth's core.

当然，它从来不会静止不动，而是由于地核中熔化的镍和铁的翻滚地狱而不断地移动。

But in recent years, the magnetic north pole has been an especially unreliable guide. In fact scientists say it's moving at a faster rate than any time in human history — which could mark the beginning of a catastrophic pole reversal.

但近年来，地磁北极一直是一个特别不可靠的向导。事实上，科学家说，它的移动速度比人类历史上任何时候都要快，这可能标志着灾难性的极地逆转的开始。

Fortunately for Earth-dwellers, that process would still likely take around 10,000 years. Still, the dramatic shift is already causing problems for the countless animals — from birds to bats to sea turtles — that rely on magnetic north for migration.

幸运的是，对于地球上的居民来说，这一过程可能还需要大约1万年的时间。尽管如此，这一戏剧性的转变已经给无数动物带来了问题，从鸟类到蝙蝠再到海龟，这些动物都依赖磁场北移。

And possibly the few adventurous humans who still navigate this world with nothing more than a compass.

或许还有少数敢于冒险的人类，他们仍然只用指南针在这个世界上航行。