Question

Why always suspended magnet points in the north-south direction, not in the east-west direction?

Answer 1

Answer:

• A magnet is a material or object that produces a magnetic field. This magnetic field is invisible but is responsible for the most notable property of a magnet: a force that pulls on other ferromagnetic materials, such as iron, and attracts or repels other magnets.

• A magnetic field is a vector field that describes the magnetic influence on moving electric charges, electric currents, and magnetized materials. A charge that is moving in a magnetic field experiences a force perpendicular to its own velocity and to the magnetic field.

• The earth behaves as a magnetic dipole . Therefore a freely suspended magnet always points towards in the north-south direction because the north pole of the suspended magnet attracts the south pole of the earth's magnet which is the geographical north pole of the earth.