NHS calls for ban on small magnetic toys due to risk to children

NHS calls for ban on small magnetic toys after dozens of children who swallowed them needed urgent surgery Ingesting more than one magnet can cause major damage in hours if not removed  They fuse in intestines or bowels, squeezing tissue and cutting off blood supply At least 65 children have been admitted to hospital for … Read more

Solar winds stay so hot because of magnetic connections that form in the turbulence, study reveals 

When solar winds hit the Earth they are ten times hotter than scientists would expect, and it is due to turbulence in magnetic fields, a new study reveals. Solar physicists from University College London (UCL) created a series of complex supercomputer simulations to map the hot winds coming from the Sun. The solar wind is … Read more

Virgin Hyperloop shows off transport concept of floating magnetic pods

Newly released photos show the construction of Hyperloop – the high-speed vacuum train that will hurtle customers along at up to 750 miles/hour (1,200 kph).  Virgin Hyperloop, which is one of the companies constructing the ambitious project worldwide, gave Reuters a tour of its test site near Las Vegas.  Photos show its 1,640 foot-long white metal tube … Read more

Sharks use Earth’s magnetic fields to guide them during their long-distance forays

Forget Google Maps! Sharks use Earth’s magnetic fields to guide them during their long-distance forays across the sea Researchers studied the role of the magnetic field on 20 bonnethead sharks   Found they likely use the planet’s magnetic field to navigate the oceans  Sharks migrate thousands of miles back to the same spot every year   But this … Read more

Magnetic reversal 42,000 years ago triggered climate change 

A reversal of the magnetic poles 42,000 years ago triggered catastrophic climate change and may have wiped out Neanderthals, a new study shows. Australian researchers have analysed the radiocarbon record from ancient trees in New Zealand that were alive when the magnetic poles flipped. The trees revealed spikes in atmospheric radiocarbon levels, caused by the collapse … Read more

Magnetic reversal 42,000 years ago triggered climate change 

A reversal of the magnetic poles 42,000 years ago triggered catastrophic climate change and may have wiped out Neanderthals, a new study shows. Aussie researchers have analysed the radiocarbon record from ancient trees in New Zealand that were alive when the magnetic poles flipped. The trees revealed spikes in atmospheric radiocarbon levels, caused by the collapse … Read more

Birds can ‘read’ Earth’s magnetic signature so they don’t get lost

When migrating birds get lost, they can ‘read’ the signature of the Earth’s magnetic field well enough to find their way once again, a study has revealed. Researchers from the UK exposed Eurasian reed warblers to a fake magnetic signature — thousands of miles from their usual path — to see how they would react. Despite … Read more

Birds can ‘read’ Earth’s magnetic signature so they don’t get lost

When migrating birds get lost, they can ‘read’ the signature of the Earth’s magnetic field well enough to find their way once again, a study has revealed. Researchers from the UK exposed Eurasian reed warblers to a fake magnetic signature — thousands of miles from their usual path — to see how they would react. Despite … Read more

Magnetic waves make Sun’s corona chemically different to the star’s other layers

The Sun’s corona — the outermost layer which can reach temperatures in excess of one million degrees Celsius — is chemically very different to the rest of the star despite being physically connected.  Astronomers have been unable to explain, and prove, this phenomenon for more than half a century, making it one of astronomy’s enduring … Read more