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Sponsored by: Creative Magnetism Solutions, LLC

The Compact Magnetic Sensor (CMS) is a low cost, low power, weatherproof device that detects small changes in Earth’s magnetic field. It is capable of running in battery mode for a week in various environments, and can store recorded 3-axis magnetic field data to permanent storage. When interrogated, data is transferred to the user’s mobile device wirelessly, allowing the device to remain undisturbed in its location. The user interacts with the sensor through anÌý Android app to receive stored data and check sensor conditions such as remaining battery life and operating temperature. The CMS is developed by the Weathernauts, consisting of Sam Solondz, Panupoan Xiong, Courtney Howell, Sean Barich, and James Li. It was initially proposed by Dr. Manoj Nair and Dr. Rick Saltus of Creative Magnetism Solutions, LLC.

Earth’s magnetic field protects the atmosphere from damaging solar wind particles. However, solar winds cause variations from 1’s to 100’s of nanoteslas in Earth’s magnetic field. Few solutions for measuring these fluctuations exist outside of expensive and non-portable units built into one location. Creative Magnetism Solutions previously created an extremely high-precision sensing device, but it is expensive and ill-suited to remain in the field for long periods of time. The CMS is a cost-effective solution that improves power consumption, portability, and data handling while upholding a standard of high-precision.

The product is targeted toward researchers in the geophysics field to improve their knowledge and understanding of the Earth’s magnetic field. When a GPS signal is unavailable, magnetic field models are essential for providing accurate navigation. Government and educational researchers can spread many of the CMS units across the world to measure, model and ultimately predict the effects of solar winds. Additionally, the CMS is useful for oil drilling companies to monitor magnetic field variations during an operation. The CMS is easy to operate and has applications to studies related to Earth’s magnetic field. No technical experience is necessary to obtain data from the CMS. All that is required is the CMS, the included Android app, and a desire to measure fluctuations in Earth’s magnetic field.