Does a magnet still point North if you are in the southern hemisphere?

Answer 1

yes, the south poll of a free spinning magnet would still point north while the north end of a free spinning magnet would point south

Answer 2

Hold a compass in your hand and it will point to the Earth's north pole. Why? Because the Earth is like one giant magnet and the compass points to the magnetic north pole. In fact, even if you go south of the equator and quite close to the south pole, the compass will still point to the north magnetic pole. With only two exceptions, it will always behave that way. But first, you might wonder why the Earth behaves like a magnet at all.

To best understand Earth's magnetic field, picture a bar magnet and a bunch of iron filings dumped around it. The filings form lines running from the north pole of the magnet to the south pole of the magnet. We call these lines magnetic field lines. The compass is acting somewhat like the iron filings and is pointing towards the north pole. The actual cause of the magnetism has to do with the interior of the Earth.

We know that at the center of the Earth lies a molten metallic iron rich core. The outer portion of this core is molten. We also believe that this core is spinning. Our knowledge of the details of exactly what causes the magnetic field is sketchy but it is believed that the metals in the core have many loosely bound electrons and that these particles can conduct electricity. It is this mass of moving electrons which produces the magnetic field.

So now we know what causes the magnetism that attracts the compass. The sailors mentioned above also saw their compass pointing to magnetic north even though they were as far south as Antarctica. And we know that the compass nearly always points to magnetic north. So what are those two exceptions? If you were to take a compass and stand just over either the north or the south magnetic pole, you would see the compass spin freely. From the south pole, every direction is north and from the north pole, there is no north. But there is still a way you could know where you were!

Answer 3

Yes, a magnet is tuned to the magnetic field of the Earth, which circulates the globe, entering into the north pole, traveling through the core, and exiting through the south pole to travel upwards toward the north pole again, creating a current in the atmosphere which dictates that compasses all point north at any point on the globe

Answer 4

No. It will point the closest magnetic pole, the southern magnetic pole, which in fact is a magnetic north pole. I just don't know how could have done so much talking about somebody^

Answer 5

Magnets by themselves don't point north; a magnetic compass will.

Answer 6

actually a compass points north and south, the needle is simply a magnet... and so is the earth, so the compas needle aligns with the lines of force of the earth.

Answer 7

If you stand at the south pole. Eveywhere you turn, the compass points north.

Answer 8

Yes.