Skewnesses of the marine and MAGSAT magnetic anomalies of the Atlantic ocean are explained in terms of the remanent magnetization gradually acquired by the oceanic lithosphere during its cooling. Magnetizations of the lower crust and the upper mantle are about 20--50 and 10--30 percent of the magnetization of the oceanic basaltic layer 2A, respectively. The oceanic upper mantle controls the skewness of the MAGSAT anomalies, whereas the skewness of the marine anomalies arise primarily from the oceanic lower crust. ¿ American Geophysical Union 1988