🚀 go-pugleaf

I am trying to build a fluxgate magnetometer sensitive enough to
monitor variations in the Earth's magnetic field, mostly to observe
magnetic storms caused by big flares on the sun (March 13, 1989
stuff especially :-) !).

I have seen an article about one of these designed to serve as a
solid state compass in Radio Electronics magazine's "Hardware
Hacker" column, and Radio Shack has also recently come out with a
fluxgate compass.  Would such a circuit be readily adaptable for my
purposes?  My main concern is whether it would have enough
sensitivity;  I would like to measure changes at least as small as
10 gammas (.001 Gauss), and if possible, even smaller.

I envision having a setup with the magnetometer hooked up to a
chart recorder and running 24 hours a day.  It would alert me to
the start of any magnetic storms and would show me the best times
to try and observe the northern lights from my location here in
California, if there are more *big* flares like this past March
(they were actually seen here then, but I wasn't aware of it until
a few days later).

I would appreciate hearing from anyone who has built any sort of
fluxgate magnetometer, anyone who has seen a construction article
for one, or anybody with suggestions/ideas/etc. on the feasibility
of this project.  Please email to any of the addresses below.

Thanks!

-- 
(     Mark A. Haun  KJ6PC     )(    UUCP: ...ames!pacbell!sactoh0!mahaun     )
(   Sac-Unix, Sacramento CA   )( AMPRNET: kj6pc@kj6pc.ampr.org               )
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