Magnetic moment
![An electrostatic analog for a magnetic moment: two opposing charges separated by a finite distance.](/Images/godic/202501/25/VFPt_dipole_electric.svg0642.png")
![Moment μ of a planar current having magnitude I and enclosing an area S](/Images/godic/202501/25/Magnetic_moment.svg0642.png")
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![Magnetic field lines around a](/Images/godic/202501/25/Magnetic_dipole_moment0642.jpg")
The magnetic moment of a magnet is a quantity that determines the torque it will experience in an external magnetic field. A loop of electric current, a bar magnet, an electron (revolving around a nucleus), a molecule, and a planet all have magnetic moments.