- Explore_ Earth's Magnetic Field (2023) #2

pdf

School

Harvard University *

*We aren’t endorsed by this school

Course

180

Subject

Physics

Date

Oct 30, 2023

Type

pdf

Pages

1

Uploaded by AmbassadorGiraffeMaster852

Report
Earth’s Magnetic Field Have you ever stopped to think about how a compass works? How is it that a little piece of metal always points north, no matter where you are on the planet? What is causing it to align in such a way? You’re probably saying “Earth’s magnetic field...duh!” And you’re absolutely right! But why does Earth have a magnetic field? What actually causes its magnetic field? And how do we know? Explore: Bar Magnets Something curious happens when you hang a bar magnet from a ring stand: after a few seconds of swinging around, it stops in a certain orientation. The phenomenon only becomes obvious when you set up a room full of bar magnets. Obviously, the magnets oriented themselves the way they did because of Earth’s magnetic field. But what actually causes Earth’s magnetic field? After all, not every planet in our solar system has a magnetic field. In fact, our two closest neighbors, Venus and Mars, have no magnetic field! Explore: Magnetism and Electricity The mysteries of magnetism deepen when you introduce electricity. But why? How are they connected? Something interesting happens when you pass an electric field near a compass. Watch the video linked above to observe. Explain: The Connection between Electricity and Magnetism Turns out, the branch of science known as physics has helped us understand that where there is electricity, there is magnetism and where there is magnetism, there is electricity. So since the Earth clearly has a magnetic field, there must be electricity flowing! But where? In the crust? In the mantle? In the core? Electricity is essentially the movement of electrons. Metals have many electrons that are free to move, and if the metal is molten and moving in a particular path, that liquid metal will create an electrical field and therefore a magnetic field! Let’s figure out where this electricity (and therefore the Earth’s magnetic field) is being generated. Think back to what you have already learned. In the Meteorites article, we learned that meteorites deposited, among other things, iron. Think about the density of iron in comparison with other materials in Earth. What would iron’s comparative density cause it to do in terms of layering? (Think back to the lava lamp.) Iron might sink because it has higher density Think about the process of a phase change: solid to liquid, liquid to gas. If the melting point of Iron is 1538° C, and the temperature of the outer core is between 4500° and 5500° C, what would Iron do under these conditions? melt As we hope you can see, the dense iron would sink below the other less dense materials, ending up in the core. The core is extremely hot, which causes the iron to be molten, which means it’s a liquid. But in order for electricity and magnetism to be generated, the liquid must be moving, as stated above, “in a particular path”. What do you think causes the liquid iron to move in a particular path? (Is our planet moving? Think about why we have day and night.) The iron in the outer core moves because on convection.
Discover more documents: Sign up today!
Unlock a world of knowledge! Explore tailored content for a richer learning experience. Here's what you'll get:
  • Access to all documents
  • Unlimited textbook solutions
  • 24/7 expert homework help

Related Documents

2009-10HarmonicMotion3.pdf
E5E2CB95-7E55-4AEE-8F5E-A00C554246CA.jpeg
D0FC2339-B627-4F21-AFDD-6BDDBEBB3B12.jpeg
123A9165-B9F1-46A2-AB16-01FFD3759AB1.jpeg
1AAA8050-D48F-434D-A35D-FF9C6CB8DEF6.jpeg
68C661E3-C171-4D84-B521-9E3F0AF5B259.jpeg
Practice problesm 16-17 (2).docx
Concept Check #1.docx
Doppler Effect simulator lab.docx
GSOE9740_LECTURE_FundamentalProgrammingConcepts.pdf
Arjun Physics Hw.pdf
Physics_1B_Worksheet_1.pdf
Recommended textbooks for you
Text book image
Inquiry into Physics
Physics
ISBN:9781337515863
Author:Ostdiek
Publisher:Cengage
Text book image
Physics for Scientists and Engineers: Foundations...
Physics
ISBN:9781133939146
Author:Katz, Debora M.
Publisher:Cengage Learning
Text book image
College Physics
Physics
ISBN:9781938168000
Author:Paul Peter Urone, Roger Hinrichs
Publisher:OpenStax College
Text book image
Physics for Scientists and Engineers with Modern ...
Physics
ISBN:9781337553292
Author:Raymond A. Serway, John W. Jewett
Publisher:Cengage Learning
Text book image
Astronomy
Physics
ISBN:9781938168284
Author:Andrew Fraknoi; David Morrison; Sidney C. Wolff
Publisher:OpenStax
Text book image
Principles of Physics: A Calculus-Based Text
Physics
ISBN:9781133104261
Author:Raymond A. Serway, John W. Jewett
Publisher:Cengage Learning
SEE MORE TEXTBOOKS
Recommended textbooks for you
Text book image
Inquiry into Physics
Physics
ISBN:9781337515863
Author:Ostdiek
Publisher:Cengage
Text book image
Physics for Scientists and Engineers: Foundations...
Physics
ISBN:9781133939146
Author:Katz, Debora M.
Publisher:Cengage Learning
Text book image
College Physics
Physics
ISBN:9781938168000
Author:Paul Peter Urone, Roger Hinrichs
Publisher:OpenStax College
Text book image
Physics for Scientists and Engineers with Modern ...
Physics
ISBN:9781337553292
Author:Raymond A. Serway, John W. Jewett
Publisher:Cengage Learning
Text book image
Astronomy
Physics
ISBN:9781938168284
Author:Andrew Fraknoi; David Morrison; Sidney C. Wolff
Publisher:OpenStax
Text book image
Principles of Physics: A Calculus-Based Text
Physics
ISBN:9781133104261
Author:Raymond A. Serway, John W. Jewett
Publisher:Cengage Learning
SEE MORE TEXTBOOKS

Browse Popular Homework Q&A

Q: Identify the sampling technique used. Thirty five sophomores, 53 juniors and 63 seniors are randomly…
Q: The circle graph shows a breakdown of spending for the average household using 365 days worked as a…
Q: Every addition to a binary search tree adds a new - ancestor - parent - leaf - roo
Q: Analyze some common internal controls over inventories. Explain the significant inherent risks…
Q: A manufacturer produces microwaves. He estimates that by selling them for x dollars each he will be…
Q: You wish to test Ho: μ = 87.5 versus Ha: 87.5 at a significance level of 0.10. You obtain a sample…
Q: A particle moves along the x-axis so that it’s position at any time t≥0 is given by…
Q: We begin with Direction A. (a) What is the x coordinate of the vector tail (x₁)? (b) What is the x…
Q: The shape below contains a rectangle and four semi-circles. 5 13 Round your responses to two decimal…
Q: Reference the attached zip file containing all data files and birthday_run_once.py. Q1.) Find the…
Q: Test the claim that the mean GPA of night students is smaller than 2.9 at the 0.10 significance…
Q: Calculate the boiling point of a solution made by adding 12.32 g of a nonelectrolyte (87.1 g/mol) to…
Q: a + 2b - c 3a + 4b 2a - 3c 56 Decide if you can compute the dimension of W using vector space…
Q: (4) V2 = A basis for R³ consists of the three vector V₁ = , V3 = 1 2 3 " (You do not have to verify…
Q: Select all of the following that would be soluble in the water layer of an extraction that utilizes…
Q: In the Gauss-Jordan method, we are always allowed to multiply rows together. Group of answer choices…
Q: Question 5 Given the following dictionary: students = { 'jim': 15, 'john': 42, amy': 25, } 1 Write…
Q: The principal P is borrowed at a simple interest rater for a period of time t. Find the loan's…
Q: Use Euler's method with step size 0.5 to compute the approximate y-values y1, 32, and y3 of the…
Q: In a survey of n = 400 randomly selected Americans, a polling organization asked: "Do you favor…
Q: Consider a market with two firms (Firm 1 and Firm 2), which produce an identical good. Both firms…
Q: A medical researcher says that less than 78​% of adults in a certain country think that healthy…
Q: A player losses a fair 6 sided dice. If the number on the die is a 3 or an 5 he receives $5 if the…
Q: Water towers store water above the level of consumers for times of heavy use, eliminating the need…
Q: Can someone help me with this problem?