A magnetometer is a device that measures magnetic field or magnetic dipole moment. Different types of magnetometers measure the direction, strength, or relative change of a magnetic field at a particular location. A compass is one such device, one that measures the direction of an ambient magnetic field, in this case, the Earth's magnetic field. Other magnetometers measure the magnetic dipole moment of a magnetic material such as a ferromagnet, for example by recording the effect of this magnetic dipole on the induced current in a coil.
Space weather is a branch of space physics and aeronomy, or heliophysics, concerned with the varying conditions within the Solar System and its heliosphere. This includes the effects of the solar wind, especially on the Earth's magnetosphere, ionosphere, thermosphere, and exosphere. Though physically distinct, space weather is analogous to the terrestrial weather of Earth's atmosphere. The term "space weather" was first used in the 1950s and popularized in the 1990s. Later, it prompted research into "space climate", the large-scale and long-term patterns of space weather.
Earth's magnetic field, also known as the geomagnetic field, is the magnetic field that extends from Earth's interior out into space, where it interacts with the solar wind, a stream of charged particles emanating from the Sun. The magnetic field is generated by electric currents due to the motion of convection currents of a mixture of molten iron and nickel in Earth's outer core: these convection currents are caused by heat escaping from the core, a natural process called a geodynamo.
A geomagnetic storm, also known as a magnetic storm, is a temporary disturbance of the Earth's magnetosphere caused by a solar wind shock wave.
SANSA Space Science, previously the Hermanus Magnetic Observatory (HMO) is South Africa's national geomagnetic research facility. The observatory is situated in the town of Hermanus in the Western Cape Province and forms part of the South African National Space Agency.
Julius Bartels was a German geophysicist and statistician who made notable contributions to the physics of the Sun and Moon; to geomagnetism and meteorology; and to the physics of the ionosphere. He also made fundamental contributions to statistical methods for geophysics. Bartels was the first President of the International Association of Geomagnetism and Aeronomy (IAGA). With Sydney Chapman, he wrote the influential book Geomagnetism.
The K-index quantifies disturbances in the horizontal component of Earth's magnetic field with an integer in the range 0–9 with 1 being calm and 5 or more indicating a geomagnetic storm. It is derived from the maximum fluctuations of horizontal components observed on a magnetometer during a three-hour interval. The label K comes from the German word Kennziffer meaning "characteristic digit". The K-index was introduced by Julius Bartels in 1939.
In geophysics, a magnetic anomaly is a local variation in the Earth's magnetic field resulting from variations in the chemistry or magnetism of the rocks. Mapping of variation over an area is valuable in detecting structures obscured by overlying material. The magnetic variation in successive bands of ocean floor parallel with mid-ocean ridges was important evidence for seafloor spreading, a concept central to the theory of plate tectonics.
The International Association of Geomagnetism and Aeronomy (IAGA) is an international scientific association that focuses on the study of terrestrial and planetary magnetism and space physics.
The International Geomagnetic Reference Field (IGRF) is a standard mathematical description of the large-scale structure of the Earth's main magnetic field and its secular variation. It was created by fitting parameters of a mathematical model of the magnetic field to measured magnetic field data from surveys, observatories and satellites across the globe. The IGRF has been produced and updated under the direction of the International Association of Geomagnetism and Aeronomy (IAGA) since 1965.
Colaba Observatory, also known as the Bombay Observatory, was an astronomical, timekeeping, geomagnetic and meteorological observatory located on the Island of Colaba, Mumbai (Bombay), India.
Geomagnetic secular variation refers to changes in the Earth's magnetic field on time scales of about a year or more. These changes mostly reflect changes in the Earth's interior, while more rapid changes mostly originate in the ionosphere or magnetosphere.
Valeria Troitskaya was a Russian geophysicist who is known for her work on Ultra Low Frequency (ULF) waves.
The south magnetic pole, also known as the magnetic south pole, is the point on Earth's Southern Hemisphere where the geomagnetic field lines are directed perpendicular to the nominal surface. The Geomagnetic South Pole, a related point, is the south pole of an ideal dipole model of the Earth's magnetic field that most closely fits the Earth's actual magnetic field.
The Geomagnetic Field Monitoring Program, is a scientific mission of the Space and Upper Atmosphere Research Commission of Pakistan (SUPARCO) to undertake research in geophysics, particularly geomagnetism. The objective of the mission is to provide better understanding of the Earth's magnetic field, and of associated hazard mitigation. The program monitors mathematical variation in the South Asian regional geomagnetic field. Research is conducted in specially established geomagnetic observatories in Islamabad and Karachi. Data collected provides the basis for continuous studies of Earth's magnetic field, and is made available to various national and international institutions.
The World Digital Magnetic Anomaly Map (WDMAM) was first made available by the Commission for the Geological Map of the World in 2007. Compiled with data from governments and institutes, the project was coordinated by the International Association of Geomagnetism and Aeronomy, and was presented by Mike Purucker of NASA and Colin Reeves of the Netherlands. As of 2007, it was considered to be "the first truly global compilation of lithospheric magnetic field observations." and further improvements dated to 2009 relate to the full spectrum magnetic anomaly grid of the United States and also data of global marine magnetic anomaly.
The Indian Institute of Geomagnetism is an autonomous research institution established by the Government of India's Department of Science and Technology. The facility is engaged in basic and applied research in geomagnetism, as well as allied areas of geophysics, atmospheric physics and space physics, as well as plasma physics. The institute currently operates 12 magnetic observatories and actively participates in the Indian Antarctic Program.
Mioara Mandea is Head "Science Coordination" Department, Strategy Directorate at the Centre National d'Etudes Spatiales. Mioara Mandea’s research has had a broader significance and a huge impact in the community. One of her accomplishments of incalculable importance is the assembling of the geomagnetic time series at Paris, opening the path to other long magnetic series as Munich and Bucharest and dedicated studies. Over her entire career, she has been focused on the geomagnetic field and its variations, using data derived from magnetic observatories and satellites participating in elaborating useful models, such as the IGRF series. With GRACEFUL, a Synergy project of the European Research Council in the framework of the European Union’s Horizon 2020 Mioara Mandea continues her precursory work related to the dynamical processes in Earth's fluid core seen by both magnetic and gravity variations.
Magnetic pulsations are extremely low frequency disturbances in the Earth's magnetosphere driven by its interactions with the solar wind. These variations in the planet's magnetic field can oscillate for multiple hours when a solar wind driving force strikes a resonance. This is a form of Kelvin–Helmholtz instability. The intensity, frequency, and orientation of these variations is measured by Intermagnet.
Adolf Friedrich Karl Schmidt was a German geophysicist who examined geomagnetism. He was involved in both experimental studies and in theoretical work on geomagnetism. He also designed a magnetometer which goes by his name. He was a member of the International Commission for Terrestrial Magnetism and Atmospheric Electricity from 1898.
