NavList:

I am working with Carly Butler on a thought-experiment:  a virtual journey from Vancouver, Canada, to London, England.  If one travels along the great circle route from Vanc. to London, the approximate half-way point would be in the Inuit community of Clyde River, on Baffin Island, at N 70° 28'    W 68° 34'.  From this location, it looks like one would be around 600 nm from the North Geomagnetic Pole.

If I were to travel by land/sea to the community of Clyde River, what might I expect in terms of the behavior of my hand-compass?  When I arrive, would it be functional, impaired to some extent, or non-functional?

If my compass is not fully functional in Clyde River, when might I imagine that my hand-compass was last useful?  Might I be able to come up with a rule of thumb, e.g. my magnetic compass will still be useful for navigation as long as I am more than "X" nautical miles from the North Geomagnetic Pole?  Alternatively, maybe the North Geomagnetic Pole is not the key location for me to keep my eye on, but the North Magnetic Pole?

Or would my rule of thumb be better framed in terms of latitude, e.g. my magnetic compass will still be useful for navigation as long as I am below "Y" degrees of latitude?

Thank you,

Bob Goethe