Mesmerizing and fun to watch, the Magnetic Sand Timer uses the power of magnetism to sculpt iron filings into a hemisphere of craggy spikes.
How does it work? The magnet in the base has a magnetic field that attracts the iron filings. Iron is a ferrous element, meaning that it has atoms with unpaired electrons spinning in one direction. These electrons encourage nearby iron atoms to align and spin in the same direction. In this way, the more atoms working together, the stronger the magnet. Magnetic fields are weaker the farther from the magnets center, so the iron sculpts a visible representation of the field's size and strength every time the timer is flipped.
