What will a magnet pick up

The forces of magnetic fields can extend through water, metal, cloth, and even your skin! The biggest magnet in the world is the one you are standing on right now! At the earth's center, its outer core is composed of moving liquid iron that makes the earth a giant magnet. The movement generates a magnetic field around the planet that extends into space. If we were to draw the Earth's field lines, they would be closest together at the poles of the giant magnet: The North Pole and South Pole.

The magnetic north pole is slightly different from the geographic North Pole, or the earth's axis of rotation. In fact, the magnetic poles keep moving, due to activity far beneath the earth's surface. Currently the magnetic north pole is about miles from the geographic pole. The yearly motion of the poles is about 25 miles per year. The magnetosphere is the earth's magnetic force that extends into space. It wraps around the earth and its atmosphere. The magnetosphere acts like a shield, protecting the earth from harmful solar wind that could damage the atmosphere and life on Earth.

However, sometimes these energetic particles from the sun do interact with Earth's magnetic field, producing amazing auroras in the sky, often referred to as the Northern or Southern lights. Learn more about earth's magnetism from NASA. The earth's magnetic field is the reason a compass works. A compass is a small device containing a magnetic needle that lines up with Earth's magnetic poles. The north-seeking pole of the needle points toward the earth's north pole.

A compass comes in handy if you lose your way in the woods! Some animals, such as pigeons, bees, salmon and whales, use Earth's magnetic field to help them navigate when migrating. Scientists aren't sure how they do this, but one theory is that these creatures have magnetic material in their bodies that acts like a compass. Another type of magnet is created when electricity passes through a wire. These magnets are called electromagnets.

About years ago, scientists discovered that electricity and magnetism are close cousins. An electrical current produces a magnetic field, and a moving magnet makes an electric current. When electricity passes through a copper wire it creates a magnetic field around the wire. By winding a coil of copper wire around an iron core, the strength of the magnetic field is increased and an electromagnet is created.

You can create an electromagnet at home by wrapping wire around an iron nail and using a battery to make an electric circuit. Test it out, and you'll find that the wire-wrapped nail has become a magnet. Electromagnets are not permanent magnets.

Their magnetism disappears when the current is turned off. They are temporary magnets that can be turned off by removing the electricity. For example, when you press the button of an electric doorbell, you make an electromagnet which attracts a small hammer to the chime.

The electric circuit is broken when the button is not being pressed. Unlike a permanent magnet, the strength of the magnetic field of an electromagnet can be increased by increasing the amount of electric current that is used.

The poles of an electromagnet can also be reversed by turning the battery around and reversing the flow of the current. Electromagnets are used in headphones, alarm systems, and loudspeakers. In your home, nearly every electric appliance with an electric motor in it uses magnets to turn electricity into motion. Motors use the forces produced by magnetic fields to produce a turning motion. This spinning motion drives all kinds of machines, from your electric toothbrush to your ceiling fan.

Just as electricity can create magnetism in an electromagnet, the movement of magnets in a generator can produce electricity. All power plants use fuel to spin magnets inside coils of wire, producing electrical current. Large electromagnets are used to generate electricity at hydroelectric dams, or with other power sources such as wind and steam.

Electromagnets can be far stronger than the permanent magnets we are familiar with. Scientists measure magnetic strength in units called tesla and gauss. One tesla equals 10, gauss. A refrigerator magnet is about 10 gauss. The Earth's magnetic field is about half of one gauss. Magnets can attract dollar bills, liquids, particles from your breakfast cereal, even strawberries if the magnet is strong enough.

The reason for this is the objects contain particles of ferrous material, often iron, that is attracted to the magnet. Ink in a dollar bill for instance, has iron particles. Breakfast cereal is often fortified with iron, that can leave small particles which will stick to a magnet. Iron naturally occurs in many things such as some liquids or even vegetation, but it takes a very strong magnet to attract the tiny particles in some things and see it in action.

Those who are lucky enough to view this light show in the northern night sky may not realize that the action is the result of magnetism. The Earth itself is surrounded by a magnetic field and is in essence a giant magnet due in part to its molten iron core. The magnetic field around Earth attracts particles, such as those from the solar wind, which interact with the magnetic field and cause the display we call the Northern Lights.

Caprice Castano recently left the field of construction management to operate her own contracting business and spend time developing her writing career. Current projects include freelance writing for Internet publications and working on novel-length fiction.

Is Hematite Magnetic? Science Facts About Magnets for Kids. Demagnetizing a Steel Nail. Electric and magnetic forces between a pair of objects do not require that the objects be in contact.

The sizes of the forces in each situation depend on the properties of the objects and their distances apart and, for force between two magnets, on their orientation relative to each other. Home Accessible Science Activities. What will a magnet stick to? Print Share: Facebook Twitter Email. Vocabulary: magnet - a substance which has a magnetic field and is able to attract iron and steel magnetic pole - one of the ends of a magnet where the field of the magnet is most intense magnetic field - the area around a magnet in which magnetism can affect other objects attract - to draw by a physical force repel - to act with a force that drives something away.

Preparation: Students should use braillewriters rather than braillenotes for this activity if possible. Materials - Prepare a bag of common objects for each group. Possible items to include: washers popsicle sticks rubber bands screws aluminum foil chalk index cards or braille paper rocks marbles pencils A magnet for each student braillewriters braille paper large print paper 2 small tubs for each student group I use the tubs from mushrooms.

Procedure Warm Up: Pass out a magnet to each student. Share ideas about what is similar about the items that stick to the magnet Pick up the magnets before the following activity.

Activity: Give each student or lab group a bag full of common objects. Question: Which items in the bag will stick to the magnet? Hypothesis - 2 lists Will stick to a magnet Will NOT stick to a magnet Experiment Once all of the students or groups have composed their lists, tell students that it is time to complete the experiment and give each student a magnet.

Procedure: Place all objects back in the bag. Remove the objects one at a time to test.