International Institute for Magical Background Monitoring Headquarters: Bern, Swiss Confederation
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Data & Monitoring

Operational and historical data of the Institute's observing network. All values are referred to the unified thaumometric scale of 1954; station readings are expressed in microthaums (1 mTh = 1000 µTh).

Global Magical Background Index, 1854–2026

Source: IIMBM consolidated homogenized series (version 12.3). Dashed markers indicate episodes of accelerated dethaumization. Values before 1921 have been reconstructed from archival and proxy data (dendrothaumatological series, parish registers of miracles).

Mean background by region, µTh (rolling 12 months)

Source: regional bulletins of the Department of Thaumometry, issue 2026-06. The elevated values in Central Asia and Sub-Saharan Africa are consistent with the ley-line urban shielding hypothesis (lower density of shielding development).

Stations of the week

Weekly rotating selection of stations of the observing network (week 28, 2026). Published for purposes of public information; full series are available to States Parties via the secure THAUMEX portal.

Station ID Location Coordinates Daily mean background, µTh Deviation from normal Status
TMS-017Jungfraujoch, Switzerland46.547° N, 7.985° E24.8−0.3 %operational
TMS-042Carpathians, Gorgany ridge48.602° N, 24.021° E38.1+4.7 %operational
TMS-088Hokkaido, Japan43.336° N, 142.796° E11.9−1.1 %operational
TMS-121Altiplano plateau, Bolivia18.912° S, 67.404° W33.6+0.8 %operational
TMS-166Kimberley, Australia16.315° S, 127.551° E29.7+0.2 %operational
TMS-203Svalbard archipelago78.223° N, 15.646° E26.4−2.9 %scheduled calibration
Deviations are computed relative to each station's 1991–2020 climatological normal. Readings from station TMS-203 are excluded from the global mean for the duration of the calibration.

Methodology

The network's primary measuring instrument is the TK-7M compensation-type thaumometer, whose sensing element is a beryl monocrystal grown under conditions of reduced skeptical pressure. The unit of measurement is the millithaum (mTh): one thousandth of a thaum, defined as the quantity of magic required to levitate one gram of matter by one metre under standard conditions (Standard THM 8.417-54).

Calibration is performed twice a year against the travelling standard BET-3 (the "Bern etalon thaum"), kept in an underground shielded pavilion of the Secretariat. Before comparison, the sensing element is conditioned for at least 72 hours in a deionized environment away from sources of everyday skepticism; personnel admitted to calibration work undergo annual certification for neutrality of expectations.

Homogenization of historical series is carried out by the method of double analysis of accumulated deviations, with corrections for station relocations, instrument changes and urbanization of the surroundings. Data from the high-altitude probes and the TALOS-2 instrument are assimilated into the THAUM-RA5 reanalysis at 6-hour intervals. All published estimates are accompanied by 95-percent confidence intervals; quantities that have not passed inter-agency reconciliation are not released for publication.