SWEEPING AWAY THE MONOPOLE PROBLEM

We propose a new solution to the cosmological monopole problem in whic h domain walls sweep away the magnetic monopoles and subsequently deca y. The solution does not require extensive fine-tuning or model buildi ng; it works for the prototype SU(5) grand unification model. More gen erally, it shows that defect interactions can lead to ''defect erasure '' in phase transitions and that this can be relevant to early univers e physics.