North End of Magnet Turns Faster Experiment

10 months ago
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The hypothesis is that the north end of a magnet acting as a compass will rotate faster and farther than the south end of that magnet when the magnet is nearer the Earth's magnetic north.

The setup is a larger magnet a distance away from a floating magnet. The floating magnet is placed in such a position that the way it will normally point is about 60 degrees from the larger magnet.

The floating magnet is then turned away from its normal position and released.

The observation is that the north end of the magnet turns farther and faster than the south end of the magnet.

The conclusion is that this also applies to a magnet acting as a compass in Earth's magnetic field.

The background is that small magnetic boats that swing side to side appear to drive or translate northward and not turn at their center of mass. This is a suggested means of accelerating small satellites in low Earth orbit in certain ways without the use of propellant.

Stay tuned:)

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