Comments on «On the magnetic field of the oceans» by V.V. Gordienko

In a recent article [Gordienko, 2024], V. Gordienko, a consistent opponent of plate tectonics (PT), attempted to explain why the concept of linear magnetic anomalies, which is one of the main pillars of PT, is erroneous or at least questionable. On the contrary, from the commentator's point of view, it is one of the most important successes of geophysics in the 20th century. The commentary briefly discusses the history of the discovery of polarity reversals of the Earth's magnetic field, which, together with the spreading of the ocean floor, lead to the formation of a system of linear magnetic anomalies. The latter has now become an effective tool for studying geodynamics. Most of V. Gordienko's objections concern the uncertainty of the structure of magnetic anomaly sources, which is caused by the non-uniqueness of the solution of the inverse magnetometry problem. The commentary explains that this uncertainty in no way affects the foundations of PT concepts. In general, everything we know about spreading and subduction (the second main pillar of the PT) is combined into a logical and coherent concept of the PT, all the main elements of which are confirmed by observations.