I can still remember in 2nd grade science class wondering about this idea. And I still remember how baffled my teacher was when I asked her this question: “Doesn’t the north tip of a compass needle point to the south pole?” Think about this – if you hold up a magnet by a string, just like the needle of a compass, does the north end of the magnet line up with the north or south pole of the earth?


If you remember about magnets, you know that opposite attract. So the north tip of the compass will line up with the Earth’s SOUTH pole. So compasses are upside-down! Here’s an activity you can do right now…
Materials:


  • magnet
  • compass
  • string

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Download Student Worksheet & Exercises


The magnetic pole which was attracted to the Earth’s north pole was labeled as the Boreal or “north-seeking pole” in the 1200s, which was later shortened to “north pole”. To add to the confusion, geologists call this pole the North Magnetic Pole.


Exercises


  1. How are the lines of force different for the two magnets?
  2. How far out (in inches measured from the magnet) does the magnet affect the compass?
  3. What makes the compass move around?
  4. Do you think the compass’s north–south indicator is flipped, or the Earth’s North Pole where the South Pole is? How do you know?

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Comments

2 Responses to “Which way is North?”

  1. Yep that’s right! We talked about this during our November live class in Magnetism (if you’d like more details). Great job understanding the concept!!

  2. karena_gacek says:

    My dad told me that the point that points north
    is actually a south magnet that they painted with a N.