My question is: is earth really a magnet? Doesn anyone have any proof that earth is a magnet? Is there a magnetic core at the center of the earth? Has anyone reached the core of the earth?

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Killian Curry · Accepted Answer

Earth has a magnetic field. You can verify this yourself; it is why a compass works. Just take any magnet and hang it carefully from a string. As long as there&#039;s nothing else magnetic around and it&#039;s well-balanced and free to rotate, it will line up with Earth&#039;s magnetic field.We have measured the Earth&#039;s magnetic field all over the surface and up into outer space using satellites. The magnetic field is fairly weak; on the surface of Earth it is about a hundred times weaker than a simple refrigerator magnet, which is why we don&#039;t notice it often in daily life. No one has reached the core of the Earth; our knowledge about it is inferred using physics, mathematics, and geology.Whether or not Earth &quot;is a magnet&quot; is a semantic issue, but the existence of the magnetic field is not in doubt. This magnetic field is important to life on Earth because it deflects a lot of the harmful radiation that reaches Earth through space. It is also responsible for the auroras that appear near Earth&#039;s poles.The magnetic field is not caused by a part of the Earth being magnetized like a refrigerator magnet. Instead, it is caused by a the motion of liquid metal inside the Earth, which causes currents that generate a magnetic field. The metal moves because the Earth is different temperatures at different spots, because of gravitational forces, and because of Earth&#039;s rotation. This phenomenon is called &quot;convection&quot; and you can see it when you boil a pot of water.The physics behind generation of Earth&#039;s magnetic field is called &quot;magnetohydrodynamics&quot;. The equations involved are very complicated and difficult to solve, but there is little doubt about the fundamental mechanism. By examining old rocks, we know that Earth&#039;s magnetic field periodically switches directions. We can write computer programs that simulate Earth&#039;s magnetic field, but there is still uncertainty about details such as when the next reversal will be or how long the field will last.

Diya Bass · Accepted Answer

Yes, Earth does have a magnetic field(check it out with a compass!).In geology, they explain this in this way: The Earth&#039;s core is divided between the inner and outer cores. The inner core is solid because of the very high pressure. The outer core, although it also has high pressure, it is not as high as the inner core and thus it is not solid, but fluid. But the fluid is composed of molten iron and nickel, so its highly conductive. Due to the Earth&#039;s rotation(via the Coriolis force) and the temperature gradient inside the outer core, we have a flow of the fluid outer core. Because the conductive material is moving(rotating really, check Wikipedia), the movement is really a current and thus via Faraday&#039;s induction law, we get a magnetic field. Note that the current is also affected by the inner core but if you want more details about this check Wikipedia, as this is really not part of the answer.Nobody has been to the center but geologists know that the magnetic field certainly has to do with the aforementioned factors(like Earth&#039;s rotation) because many numerical models have successfully reproduced some of the characteristics of the Earth&#039;s field. So, while we know we are on the right path, we are not 100% sure that this is the full explanation.EDIT: the fact that there is in fact a magnetic field can be seen from Paleomagnetism, which is the study of the record of the Earth&#039;s magnetic field in rocks, sediment, or archeological materials(as Wikipedia puts it). So, we know the age of rocks from the direction and magnitude of the magnetic field during the time when the rock was formed.

My question is: is earth really a magnet? Doesn anyone

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