How are magnets made? – The Hindu

You must have played with magnets in your childhood, fascinated by how they tend to stick to each other, and to the metallic things around you. Did you ever wonder how those wondrous, sticky pieces of metal were made? Whether you did or not, we are answering that question today.

Did you know that they are magnets that naturally exist around us? There are some minerals out there that are naturally magnetic in nature. Lodestone, in particular, is a piece of the mineral magnetite, which is naturally magnetised and can attract iron. It is magnetised, with massive electric discharges from exposure to lightning. When lightning hits the magnetite deposits, the intense, transient magnetic field aligns the magnetic domains, turning the rock into a permanent magnet.