Prof. Jean-Marie FRERE is a scientist at the Service de Physique Théorique, Université Libre de Bruxelles, Belgium.
His research interests are in Particle Physics and Fundamental Interactions, in particular in some better understanding of the mechanisms at play:
- unification of the interactions,
- origin of mass
- cosmological evolution.
During his stay in Quy Nhon, he shared with us a simple measurement, as a prelude to an international call for secondary schools (or first years of university students) to measure the horizontal component of the Earth magnetic field, an object which is shared by the whole world population.
Measurement of the Earth magnetic field in Quy Nhon
This simple measurement is the prelude to an international call for secondary schools (or first years of university students) to measure the horizontal component of the Earth magnetic field, an object which is shared by the whole world population!
While the apparatus may not yield the exact normalization, comparison of data on different points of the Earth (by different schools communicating by Internet) allows for definite comparisons.
For instance, the value found in Quy Nhon is, as expected , approximately twice that found in Brussels (Belgium).
While any school can easily reproduce the equipment, it was tested here by the staff at the Quy Nhon Planetarium and will be available to students or visitors in the future.
Anybody can join : the instructions for a standardized solenoïd and the few extra components can be found (including a PDF template) at http://homepages.ulb.ac.be/~frere/MagneticField/EarthMagneticField.html
Comment on the picture: to avoid stray magnetic fields and steel components inside the building, the measurement needs to be done outside, with the power provided by batteries or dry cells. (avoid car batteries due to the risk of deadly short-circuit).
For more information contact:
Prof. Jean-Marie FRERE Physique theorique , CP 225 Universite Libre de Bruxelles Bruxelles http://homepages.ulb.ac.be/~frere http://www.ulb.ac.be/sciences/physth/
Da Vinci High School students in Treviso, Italy, answer Prof. FRERE’s international call and fly to Hillsdale, NJ, to repeat the experiment overseas
This is a report by Mrs. Margherita Basso, High School teacher in Treviso, Italy, who answered prof. FRERE’s call to measure the horizontal component of the Earth magnetic field.
At the end of 2017 Mr Enrico Belli suggested me to take part to the project “Measurement of the Earth magnetic field” proposed by Mr Frére, professor at ULB of Bruxelles.
My pupils of the fourth year at the Leonardo Da Vinci Scientific High School in Treviso, Italy, welcomed the challenge following Mr Frère’s announcement. The description of the experimental plant is very clear.
Mrs. Margherita Basso, teacher at the Da Vinci High School in Treviso, Italy
The procedure was to observe the deviation of a magnetic needle, at the beginning oriented only by the Earth magnetic field, caused by the magnetic field of a solenoid run across an electric current. Indeed a physical law states that, if a solenoid is connected to an electricity generator, it generates, inside itself, a magnetic field parallel to the same axis and directly proportional to the intensity of the current.
The pupils repeated the measures both in the Laboratory in our school in Treviso, Italy, and in New Jersey, USA, during their cultural exchange trip at the Pascack Valley High School, Hillsdale, NJ.
The results, both in Treviso and in Hillsdale, were quite good, with deep gratification of the students, and mine too.
The Da Vinci High School students making Prof. FRERE’s experiment at the Pascack Valley High School, Hillsdale, NJ, USA
The Da Vinci High School students making the experiment at the Pascack Valley High School, Hillsdale, NJ, USA 
The Da Vinci High School students making the experiment at the Pascack Valley High School, Hillsdale, NJ, USA 
The Da Vinci High School students making the experiment at the Pascack Valley High School, Hillsdale, NJ, USA 
The Da Vinci High School students making the experiment at the Pascack Valley High School, Hillsdale, NJ, USA 
The Da Vinci High School students making the experiment at the Pascack Valley High School, Hillsdale, NJ, USA
Photo credits
Jean Marie FRERE, Margherita BASSO, University of Wolverhampton