• Question: do compasses work in space

    Asked by liz to Andrea, Charlie 🚀, Col Op, Kirsty, Vinita on 15 Jun 2016. This question was also asked by Robert.
    • Photo: Kirsty Lindsay

      Kirsty Lindsay answered on 15 Jun 2016:

      yes and no-t depends on where you are in space.

      If you are in Low Earth Orbit, like ISS, you would be inside the Earth’s magnetic field, so a compass would work and point North.

      If you where further away from Earth, where the magnetic field is weaker, the compass would stop working very well.

      If you were in deep space, or on a planet like Mars which doesn’t have a magnetic field your compass would not work.

    • Photo: Andrea Boyd

      Andrea Boyd answered on 15 Jun 2016:

      The ISS is pretty low so it still works but you need a magnetic field (like the Earth’s magnetic field) so it doesn’t work in space in general.

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