Is It Electric or Magnetic? Depends on Where You Stand
1 min read
Summary
All fives of the fundamental forces of physics - strong nuclear, weak nuclear, electric, magnetic and gravity - are dependent on the observer’s frame of reference, which poses a problem in studying electric and magnetic fields, according to the author of this article.
For example, an observer from a certain reference frame may view an interaction between two charges as an electric force, but an observer from another reference frame may view the same interaction as a magnetic force, due to the motion of one or both of the charges.
The author explains Coulomb’s law, which calculates the electrostatic force between two charged objects, and how moving charges also create a magnetic force, illustrating the “weirdness” of magnetic forces with an example.
The author then notes that this poses a problem when observers in different reference frames record different amounts of time for charges to move apart, which can be reconciled by Einstein’s theory of special relativity, which introduces the concept of time dilation.
The author concludes by stating that, in the end, the problem is resolved by unifying the electric and magnetic forces into one electromagnetic force.
