Why is magnetism a non-contact force?
1 Answer
You don't need the south and north poles of different magnets to be in contact for magnetic force to exist between them.
Explanation:
Contact forces, as the name implies, need contact between the force exerter and the thing the force exerts upon. Examples of contact forces are applied force (when pushing or pulling an object), frictional force (force between two surfaces), tension force (force transmitted through a rope, string, or a wire to an object).
Non-contact forces, on the other hand, does not need the exerter and the receiver to be in contact with each other. Examples are gravitational force (attractive force between objects that is proportional to the product of the mass of the two objects in question), and electric force (attractive force between positively- and negatively-charged objects).
Knowing that there is magnetic force that exists between two opposite magnetic poles that can actually bring them together even when the poles are far apart, it is easy to say that it is a non-contact force.
