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published by the Space Science Institute
This free computer game created by the Space Science Institute displays a "golf course" as a magnetic field and the golf ball as a proton. These charged particles interact with the magnetic fields around them, sometimes in surprising ways. The goal of the game is to guide your proton golf balls through different magnetic field configurations to sink your putt. This resource aims to enhance understanding of how protons move within a plasma, the state of matter that shoots off the surface of the Sun after a solar flare. The game allows students to visualize what is happening at the nuclear level as the plasma particles interact with fields. Key takeaways: 1) Protons can orbit around magnetic field lines but can't cross them; 2) Earth's magnetic field configuration deflects most of the solar wind particles; 3) Electric fields can cause proteins to "drift" across magnetic lines; 4) The solar wind stretches Earth's dipole into a tail; 5) Waves in Earth's magnetic field can knock particles into the polar regions; 6) Speed of the particle doesn't matter -- its drift is controlled by the strength of electric and magnetic fields.
Editor's Note: This game is a great way to help students navigate the behavior of charged particles in a magnetic field, a topic that can be mystifying when studied in a textbook.
Subjects Levels Resource Types
Astronomy
- The Sun
= Magnetic Activity
Education Practices
- Active Learning
- Technology
= Multimedia
Electricity & Magnetism
- Magnetic Fields and Forces
= Magnetic Fields
= Magnetostatic Boundary Conditions
Modern Physics
- Plasma Physics
- High School
- Lower Undergraduate
- Instructional Material
= Activity
= Game
Appropriate Courses Categories Ratings
- Physics First
- Conceptual Physics
- Algebra-based Physics
- AP Physics
- Activity
- New teachers
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Intended Users:
Learner
General Public
Format:
text/html
Access Rights:
Free access
Restriction:
© 2021 Space Science Institute (SSI)
Keywords:
magnetic field drift, plasma behavior
Record Creator:
Metadata instance created February 24, 2022 by Caroline Hall
Record Updated:
February 25, 2022 by Caroline Hall
Last Update
when Cataloged:
October 31, 2021
ComPADRE is beta testing Citation Styles!

Record Link
AIP Format
(Space Science Institute, Boulder, 2021), WWW Document, (https://www.scigames.org/game.php?id=magnetominigolf).
AJP/PRST-PER
Magneto Mini Golf (Space Science Institute, Boulder, 2021), <https://www.scigames.org/game.php?id=magnetominigolf>.
APA Format
Magneto Mini Golf. (2021, October 31). Retrieved April 18, 2025, from Space Science Institute: https://www.scigames.org/game.php?id=magnetominigolf
Chicago Format
Space Science Institute. Magneto Mini Golf. Boulder: Space Science Institute, October 31, 2021. https://www.scigames.org/game.php?id=magnetominigolf (accessed 18 April 2025).
MLA Format
Magneto Mini Golf. Boulder: Space Science Institute, 2021. 31 Oct. 2021. 18 Apr. 2025 <https://www.scigames.org/game.php?id=magnetominigolf>.
BibTeX Export Format
@misc{ Title = {Magneto Mini Golf}, Publisher = {Space Science Institute}, Volume = {2025}, Number = {18 April 2025}, Month = {October 31, 2021}, Year = {2021} }
Refer Export Format

%T Magneto Mini Golf %D October 31, 2021 %I Space Science Institute %C Boulder %U https://www.scigames.org/game.php?id=magnetominigolf %O text/html

EndNote Export Format

%0 Electronic Source %D October 31, 2021 %T Magneto Mini Golf %I Space Science Institute %V 2025 %N 18 April 2025 %8 October 31, 2021 %9 text/html %U https://www.scigames.org/game.php?id=magnetominigolf


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