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Magnetic North

 

Every compass has the directions marked, and then a floating pointer. We call it the compass needle.

On some compasses it might be red and white, but the point is, the red part of it is always pointing towards the earth's magnetic north pole.

The magnetic north pole is not exactly north, but compasses are made to compensate for this.

You always need to hold a compass flat, so that the needle floats freely. Don't ever use a compass around a magnet, because that would make it point to that instead of to magnetic north!

If you are using an orienteering compass, you should have the cord around your wrist or neck, and hold the compass level, and flat against your body so you can read the direction you want to move in.

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