Convective Motion in the Earth’s Core and the Geodynamo

Abstract

Abstract Convection within the earth’s fluid core is of crucial importance as it helps support the terrestrial magnetic field against the natural forces of decay. This chapter starts by reviewing what we know about core convection, much of it gleaned from numerical simulations. Following a brief guide to Maxwell’s equations, and to dynamo theory, the relationship between core convection and the terrestrial magnetic field is discussed. The chapter concludes with some speculative comments about reversals of the earth’s magnetic field. Despite intensive research for over half a century, our understanding of planetary dynamos is still poor, with little in the way of a predictive model.