point makes angle with the geographic meridian. This, then, is the angle between the true geographic north and the north shown by a compass needle. This angle is called the magnetic declination or simply declination (Fig. .
). The declination is greater at higher latitudes and smaller near the equator. The declination in India is small, it being FIGURE . The earth as a giant magnetic dipole.
FIGURE . A magnetic needle free to move in horizontal plane, points toward the magnetic north-south direction.