[meteorite-list] Magnetism

From: pshugar at messengersfromthecosmos.com <pshugar_at_meteoritecentral.com>
Date: Fri, 04 Nov 2011 14:27:04 -0700
Message-ID: <20111104142704.979558876a36f2d1b40acd6b9bcaf01e.dd0212afe1.wbe_at_email09.secureserver.net>

List,
The actual mechanics of magnetism is a very hard to define quality.
When I was in college, we settled on defining it as having the
overwhelming majority of all the atoms aligned into the same plane.
This would be when all the electron shells spin in he same direction.
Now in theory, each little piece of iron's atoms could align itself with
all
the other atomic iron pieces, at which time we could say with a
certainty
that the meteorite was magnetised.
However, the small pieces of metal themselves are not in alignment,
so I would have to say it will be very difficult to do. One could place
the meteorite inside a large (number of turns) coil of wire and apply
a high voltage to the coil, magnetizing a large portion of the metal
pieces. Would they stay magnetized when the power was removed from the
coil?
Maybe in a high metal meteorite? They will have the best chance to
become
magnetic, I think.
Now moving on to Irons. Someone on the list corrected me on this once
before.
Irons have a crystal structure and are not supposed to be magnetized.
That was
the correction!
However, if this were true, then over powering the crystal structure
with a neo magnet,
causing the crystal structure to become magnetic would be impossible.
I decided to make a simple experiment. I tore out an neo magnet from an
old
defunct hard drive. These, I am told, are among the strongest of all
magnets.
The first experiment was to see at what close distance the magnet would
pick
up my test meteorite slice. It was at about 1/2 inch at which time the
test slice
jumped up to meet the descending magnet.

Next, I placed the same magnet on one end of a 2 1/2 inch long piece of
a 313.6 gm slice
of Odessa. Note that this is at least 2 inches further than the distance
from the magnet
to the test slice was.
The opposite end of the Odessa then was brought near a 1/4 inch diameter
1 inch long Sikhote-Alin. The tip of the Odessa would move but not lift
the Sikhote-Alin.
The same magnet would pick up the large 313.6 gm piece of Odessa.

I doubled the size of the magnet and repeated the above experiment and
the test slice
jumped to the doubled magnet at about 3/4 inch.

Then I placed the doubled magnet in the same spot on the 313.6 gm
Odessa. The Odessa
was then able to not only move the end of the Sikhote-Alin, but to
completely lift it.

Placing the magnet on one end of the Odessa should not have made the
Odessa become a magnet
if the atoms of iron were locked in place by the crystal structure.
Since the Iron Odessa did in fact
become slightly magnetic, I can only conclude that the crystal structure
can be overrode and the
whole meteorite might become a meteorite.
I have as yet to construct a coil large enough to put the Odessa in and
test the theory that an iron
meteorite "could" become a magnet.
One last thought. Both iron and nickle will concentrate the lines of
force of a magnet.

More will follow on this as I investigate further.
Pete Shugar
IMCA 1733
Received on Fri 04 Nov 2011 05:27:04 PM PDT