Blackett effect History References Navigation menuAn Experiment on the Origin of the Earth's Magnetic...
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The Blackett effect, also called gravitational magnetism, is the hypothetical generation of a magnetic field by an uncharged, rotating body. This effect has never been observed.[citation needed]
History
Gravitational magnetism was proposed by the German-British physicist Arthur Schuster as an explanation for the magnetic field of the Earth,[1] but was found nonexistent in a 1923 experiment by H. A. Wilson.[2] The hypothesis was revived by the British physicist P. M. S. Blackett in 1947 when he proposed that a rotating body should generate a magnetic field proportional to its angular momentum.[3] This was never generally accepted, and by the 1950s even Blackett felt it had been refuted.[4], pp. 39–43
The Blackett effect was used by the science fiction writer James Blish in his series Cities in Flight (1955–1962) as the basis for his fictional stardrive, the spindizzy.[5]
References
^ A Critical Examination of the Possible Causes of Terrestrial Magnetism, A. Schuster, Proceedings of the Physical Society of London 24 (1911–1912), pp. 121–137.
^ An Experiment on the Origin of the Earth's Magnetic Field, H. A. Wilson, Proceedings of the Royal Society of London, Series A 104, #727 (November 1, 1923), pp. 451–455.
^ The magnetic field of massive rotating bodies, P. M. S. Blackett, Nature 159, #4046 (May 17, 1947), pp. 658–666.
^ Patrick Maynard Stuart Blackett, Baron Blackett, of Chelsea, 18 November 1897-13 July 1974, Bernard Lovell,
Biographical Memoirs of Fellows of the Royal Society 21 (November 1975), pp. 1–115.
^ Cities in Flight, James Blish. New York: Avon, 1982. .mw-parser-output cite.citation{font-style:inherit}.mw-parser-output .citation q{quotes:"""""""'""'"}.mw-parser-output .citation .cs1-lock-free a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/65/Lock-green.svg/9px-Lock-green.svg.png")no-repeat;background-position:right .1em center}.mw-parser-output .citation .cs1-lock-limited a,.mw-parser-output .citation .cs1-lock-registration a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d6/Lock-gray-alt-2.svg/9px-Lock-gray-alt-2.svg.png")no-repeat;background-position:right .1em center}.mw-parser-output .citation .cs1-lock-subscription a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/aa/Lock-red-alt-2.svg/9px-Lock-red-alt-2.svg.png")no-repeat;background-position:right .1em center}.mw-parser-output .cs1-subscription,.mw-parser-output .cs1-registration{color:#555}.mw-parser-output .cs1-subscription span,.mw-parser-output .cs1-registration span{border-bottom:1px dotted;cursor:help}.mw-parser-output .cs1-ws-icon a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/4c/Wikisource-logo.svg/12px-Wikisource-logo.svg.png")no-repeat;background-position:right .1em center}.mw-parser-output code.cs1-code{color:inherit;background:inherit;border:inherit;padding:inherit}.mw-parser-output .cs1-hidden-error{display:none;font-size:100%}.mw-parser-output .cs1-visible-error{font-size:100%}.mw-parser-output .cs1-maint{display:none;color:#33aa33;margin-left:0.3em}.mw-parser-output .cs1-subscription,.mw-parser-output .cs1-registration,.mw-parser-output .cs1-format{font-size:95%}.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-left,.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-wl-left{padding-left:0.2em}.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-right,.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-wl-right{padding-right:0.2em}
ISBN 0-380-00998-6.
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