Magnet

What Is a Magnet?

A magnet is a special kind of material that can pull certain metals, like iron, close to it. This happens because of an invisible force all around the magnet. Magnets can also push other magnets away. This makes them very useful in many things we see and use every day.

Fun Facts About Magnets

One easy way to see a magnet is on a refrigerator. Small magnets stick to the door and hold up notes or pictures. These magnets are called permanent magnets because they stay magnetic all the time. They are made from special materials, like alnico or ferrite.

Long ago, people found special rocks called lodestones or magnetite. These rocks could pull iron toward them and were used to make the first magnetic compasses. People in Anatolia, India, and China knew about these rocks more than 2,500 years ago.

How Magnets Work

Magnets have two ends called poles—a north pole and a south pole. Opposite poles, like north and south, pull together. But if you put two north poles or two south poles close, they push apart. The Earth also acts like a giant magnet, helping compasses point north.

Some materials, like iron and steel, can become magnets or be pulled toward them. But other things, like plastic or wood, do not feel this force at all.

Magnets in Everyday Life

Magnets are hidden in many everyday items. Old televisions and computer monitors used magnets to show pictures. Credit and debit cards have a special strip that uses magnetism to store your information. Even toys, like the Magnet Space Wheel, use magnets to make fun shapes and designs.

Magnets are also important in medicine. Machines called magnetic resonance imaging use very strong magnets to see inside the body without needing surgery. And, of course, compasses, which are little magnets, help us find our way by pointing toward the Earth's magnetic field.