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A student claims that if lightning strikes a metal flagpole, the force exerted by the earth’s magnetic field on the current in the pole can be large enough to bend it. Typical lightning currents are of the order of104to105 A. Is the student’s opinion justified? Explain your reasoning

Short Answer

Expert verified

No, the student’s opinion that the lighting current are of the order104 and105 is not justified

Step by step solution

01

Magnetic field

Magnetic force is the force of attraction or repulsion arising between an electrically charged particles as a result of their motion.

Now, Magnetic field due to current carrying wire is given by:

F=ILBsinθ

02

Calculating the force

We know that the magnetic field is given by:

F=ILB.

Assuming the pole length is 10m, we get:

F=1051010-5=10N

As the result is very strong, it will depend on the material of the flag post. Hence the student might be right on the material of the pole.

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