What causes the attraction or repulion between magnetic poles?

Answer 1

What is the mechanism whereby two magnetic objects are attracted or repulsed; what is the force mechanism? How does a magnetic compass know that it is in the presence of a magnetic field and knows the direction of the field?

These are interrelated questions that have no mechanistic answer. Science has made remarkable progress in measuring and quantifying field energies down to the atomic level such that most situations can be mathematically predicted beforehand. Theory says that two magnetically interacting objects are mechanically tractive or repulsive due to the emission and absorption of particles, presumably photons. Thus, the very important useability of motors and solenoids is possible. The question, however, remains answerable without first answering the related problem of why atomic protons and electrons are attracted yet maintain a separation without mutual annihilation. All material objects are bound together by electric field forces.

Even tensioned springs, which seem to have a mechanical connection, have to operate at the atomic level without a mechanistic connection; their only connection being the force fields of the outer shell electrons of their atoms and molecules (review ionic and covalent bonding). But electrons are mutually repulsive, not tractive. Therefore a net deficiency of electrons relative to the number of atoms (with their protons) seems to provide the atomic force holding neighboring atoms together giving the appearance of a hard mechanical bond. (Would an influx of electrons from outer space supply all atoms with a full complement of electrons and disintegrate the world?). The understanding of field forces is still unanswered.

Answer 2

The orbit of negatively charged electrons around an atoms core bends a magnetic field.
When the rotational direction of electron-orbits of atoms with parallel axes is unequal in any object, we say it is magnetically charged.

Answer 3

The orbit of negatively charged electrons around an atoms core bends a magnetic field.
When the rotational direction of electron-orbits of atoms with parallel axes is unequal in any object, we say it is magnetically charged.

Answer 4

Inside a magnet there are small regions in which the magnetic direction of all atoms are aligned in the same directions known as domains. In these domains are electrically charged particles that are in motion. The attraction and repulsion arise between these electrically charged particles.