This guided inquiry tutorial is the linchpin of the Auroral Currents DigiKit. Developed by the NASA-HEAT team for introductory astronomy courses, it aims to deepen student understanding of magnetic fields produced by current-carrying wires by introducing auroral electrojet phenomena as a large-scale model of electric current interaction in a magnetic field. Students will examine perturbations in Earth's magnetic field as measured by the International Real-time Magnetic Observatory Network to infer the direction and strength of currents running through the ionosphere. This tutorial is designed to supplement Lecture Tutorials for Introductory Astronomy for lecture-style classrooms as well as for use in recitation or tutorial classrooms.

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