The Earth's Magnetic Field (Oxford AQA IGCSE Physics)
Revision Note
Written by: Ann Howell
Reviewed by: Caroline Carroll
The Earth's Magnetic Field
On Earth, in the absence of any magnet or magnetic materials, a magnetic compass will always point north
This is evidence that the core of the Earth is magnetic and creates its own magnetic field
The Earth's magnetic field is similar to that of a bar magnet
It is most concentrated at the magnetic north and south poles
Earth's magnetic field
On Earth, the north arrow on a magnetic plotting compass will point towards the geographic North Pole (in the Arctic Ocean)
This is because the geographic North Pole is a magnetic south pole
The north pole of a magnetic compass is attracted to the Earth's magnetic south pole, a.k.a the Earth's geographic North Pole
The geographic South Pole (in Antarctica) is a magnetic north pole
The magnetic field lines point out of the pole
The north pole of the magnetic compass is repelled from the Earth's magnetic north pole and thus points away from the geographic South Pole
Earth's geographic and magnetic poles
Examiner Tips and Tricks
The Earth’s geographic North Pole acts like the south pole of a magnet. That’s why the north pole of a magnet is attracted to it.
A compass can therefore be used to navigate on Earth, as the arrow always points to the geographic North Pole.
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