Title:               The Effect of SolarActivity on Earth’s Magnetic Field

Author:          Maral DerSarkissian

Affiliation:     Crescenta Valley High School

Category:     Earth and Space Sciences

Project Summary:

OBJECTIVE: To determine if and how solar activities affect the Earth’s magnetic field. The independent variable is the degree of solar activity. Dependant variables are the changes in the Earth’s magnetic field. I predicted that as the amount of solar activity increased, changes in the Earth’s magnetic field would become more frequent.

METHOD: A magnetometer was built to observe changes in the Earth’s magnetic field. First, I attached a quartz fiber to a piece of glass (15 cm by 5 cm) that has spacers (two pieces of glass 1 cm by 5 cm glued together) attached to it at the ends. I then glued two rare earth magnets (back to back) to the quartz fiber, ensuring that the fiber was completely centered between them. I did the same with two mirrors 1.5 mm by 1.5mm, gluing them back to back with the quartz fiber between them, making sure they were in contact with the magnets. A second piece of glass 15 cm by 5 cm was glued to the first, and the sides left open were sealed off with electrical tape, enclosing the magnets and mirror to protect them from air currents. I placed this on a table and shined a laser beam at the mirror, so that the beam was reflected onto a target on a distant wall. I also glued four doughnut shaped magnets to a piece of glass 15 cm by 5 cm to null the magnetometer. I positioned a camcorder on a table to record the movement of the reflected laser beam on the target.

The rare earth magnets attached to the fiber moved with earth’s changing magnetic field. Since the mirrors are attached to the magnet, they move with the magnets, reflecting the laser beam on the target at different places in correspondence with the magnetic field.

SIGNIFICANT FINDINGS: Through research and my experiments, I learned solar activity does in fact affect the Earth’s magnetic field. Solar wind and solar flares release charged particles into space that create their own magnetic field. Their magnetic fields interact with the Earth’s, causing small changes as a result. With my experiment I also learned that the magnetic field fluctuates daily. The reflected laser beam moved steadily throughout the day. On March 26, 2002, there were extreme movements on the target between 1:52 and 1:54 PM.

Help Received: My advisor assisted me throughout the process.