Call us eristic, if you want, but we cannot deny the love for a good controversy. While we do not encourage conflict per se, we are drawn to lively discussions, as those are the ones that tend to be more memorable. One controversial theory in particular has the heads of scientists spinning. Some believe energy can be generated by spinning with the planet Earth. Could Earth’s rotation truly produce a promising effect?
A wildly controversial theory, or is it?
These days, if you hear a theory originates from Princeton University, you should not be surprised by it being so controversial. One such theory belongs to Chris Chyba of Princeton University, who has had a particular interest in power production for the past decade. This interest originated from his studies of a potential warming mechanism in moons that move through the magnetic field of a planet. His theory was, objects on Earth’s surface could have a similar effect.
Some dismiss it, claiming it is impossible due to a metal object’s electric field that cancels out the magnetic force. On the other hand, Chyba theorized that in certain conditions, electrons cannot rearrange into a magnetic-force-canceling pattern. One such condition includes a material that is simultaneously a magnetic shield and a weak conductor.
Those two crucial properties will enable a small voltage to be built up on a cylinder when it’s positioned in Earth’s magnetic field. That is the controversial theory proposed by Chyba and Kevin Hand of the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in California, proposed in 2016.
An experiment that separates fact from fiction
Both Chyba and Hand realized their theory had to be defended with an experimental demonstration. Thomas Chyba, an applied physicist in New Mexico and also Chyba’s brother, assisted in the experimental demonstration.
The experiment comprised a 30-cm-long, 2-cm-wide, hollow, manganese-zinc-ferrite cylinder. The cylinder was placed at an angle of 57° to the ground and the north–south direction. This placement was perpendicular to Earth’s rotational motion and its magnetic field. The team predicted it would result in maximum voltage. An electrode was placed at the cylinder’s ends to record the voltage.
The Seebeck effect had to be taken into consideration, which results in small voltage generation when a material is hotter on one end than the other. According to the team, the Seebeck effect accounted for some of the voltage, but there was an extra recorded 18 µV that relied on the cylinder’s orientation. Their conclusion: Extra voltage was produced by motion through Earth’s magnetic field.
Some are not convinced that Earth’s rotation produces energy
“It seems crazy. It has a whiff of a perpetual motion machine.” – Chris Chyba
It is one thing to produce these results in an experiment, but it is another to have others replicate those results. According to Chyba, that would be the best approach to convince other scientists that the effect is real. However, some are not convinced by this controversial theory, including Yong Zhu.
“There are so many factors that can produce microvolt signals, such as stray capacitance and eddy currents. Ruling out all these possibilities will require more experimental evidence. – Yong Zhu, a microelectronics expert from Griffith University in Australia
A retired physicist from the Free University of Amsterdam, Rinke Wijngaarden, has found the theory very interesting, and has tried to replicate the effect with experiments of his own in 2018. Unfortunately, he could not replicate the results. While the theory remains interesting to him, he is:
“still convinced that the theory of Chyba et al. cannot be correct.”
The majority agrees, the theory is interesting. However, it seems as though Chyba and his team still have a long way to go. For now, the majority seems to focus on Earth’s magnetic field for this strange reason.