Collaborative Research: Archaeomagnetic Investigations of Geomagnetic Field Behavior in North and South America

在美国，考古磁学主要被用作考古年代测定技术，很少用于研究地球磁场。该项目将使用年代久远的考古遗址来获取与三个问题有关的考古磁数据：1)西半球在公元1550年至1800年之间的磁场方向和强度，2)公元前200年以来美国西南部方向变化的连续记录。3)北美和南美过去一万年的强度变化记录。在每一种情况下，古磁学都可以澄清有关地球磁场行为的重要问题，这些问题是最近在研究历史记录、快速沉积的沉积物和熔岩流方面取得的进展所产生的。尽管在调查过程中将遵循标准的考古磁学程序，但一个重要的附加组成部分将是对各种样品的磁性矿物学和岩石磁性特性的详细研究。这些从未对古磁材料进行过系统的研究，将为我们所做的测量提供更坚实的古磁基础，并将为不同考古材料和古磁技术的相对优点提供新的见解。

In the United States archaeomagnetism has been used primarily as an archaeological dating technique and has seldom been used to study the Earth's magnetic field. This project will use well- dated archaeological sites to acquire archaeomagnetic data relating to three problems: 1) the direction and intensity of the field at spot locations in the Western Hemisphere between 1550 and 1800 A.D., 2) the continuous record of directional changes in the American Southwest from 200 B.C.. to 1800 A.D., and 3) the record of intensity changes over the past 10,000 years in North and South America. In each case archaeomagnetism can clarify important questions about the behavior of the Earth's magnetic field that have arisen from recent advances in the study of historical records, rapidly-deposited sediments and lava flows. Although standard archaeomagnetic procedures will be followed during the course of the investigation, an important additional component will be detailed studies of the magnetic mineralogy and rock magnetic properties of various samples. These studies, which have never been done systematically for archaeomagnetic materials, will provide a firmer paleomagnetic basis for the measurements which we make and will provide new insights into the relative merits of different archaeological materials and archaeomagnetic techniques.