What is "magneto"

magneto \mag*ne"to\ (m[a^]g*n[=e]"t[-o]), n. A small electric generator with an armature rotating in a magnetic field, having a secondary winding that generates a high voltage, such as one used to generate a voltage sufficient to cause a spark to jump between the poles of a spark plug in an internal-combustion engine.

1882, short for magneto-electric machine (see magneto-).

n. A small magnetic dynamo, especially one that provides power to the spark plugs of a small internal combustion engine. (from 19th c.)

n. a small dynamo with a secondary winding that produces a high voltage enabling a spark to jump between the poles of a spark plug in a gasoline engine [syn: magnetoelectric machine]

Magneto is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics, commonly in association with the X-Men. Created by writer Stan Lee and artist Jack Kirby, the character first appears in The X-Men #1 ( cover-dated Sept. 1963) as the archenemy of the X-Men.

The character is a powerful " mutant", one of a fictional subspecies of humanity born with superhuman abilities, who has the ability to generate and control magnetic fields. Magneto regards mutants as evolutionarily superior to humans and rejects the possibility of peaceful human-mutant coexistence; he aims to conquer the world to enable mutants (whom he refers to as "homo superior") to replace humans as the dominant species. Writers have since fleshed out his origins and motivations, revealing him to be a Holocaust survivor whose extreme methods and cynical philosophy derive from his determination to protect mutantkind from suffering a similar fate at the hands of a world that fears and persecutes mutants. He was once a friend of Professor X, leader of the X-Men, but their different philosophies caused a rift in their friendship. Magneto's role in comics has varied from supervillain to antihero to superhero, having served as an occasional ally and even a member of the X-Men at times.

His character's early history has been compared with the civil rights leader Malcolm X and Jewish Defense League founder Meir Kahane. Magneto resents the pacifist attitude of Professor X and pushes for a more aggressive approach to achieving civil rights. In 2011, IGN ranked Magneto as the greatest comic book villain of all time, outranking 99 other villains for the top spot.

Sir Ian McKellen portrayed Magneto in four films of the X-Men film series, while Michael Fassbender portrayed a younger version of the character in the 2011 prequel X-Men: First Class. In addition, both actors reprised the role in the film X-Men: Days of Future Past, set in two different eras. Fassbender reprised his role in the 2016 film X-Men: Apocalypse.

Magneto was a popular Mexican boy band of the 1980s and 1990s. The band formed on February 14, 1983. In 1986, Magneto was featured in "Siempre en Domingo," a Mexican entertainment show viewed across Latin America and parts of Europe. Mexican teen pop group Magneto emerged in 1983. Their first record, Dejalo Que Gire came in 1984, followed by Super 6 Magneto. Tha Latin pop outfit suffered several lineup changes before achieving their first gold record in 1986. Mostly playing dance-pop songs, the five-member ensemble started touring Central America after climbing charts with "Todo Esta Muy Bien," and "Soy Un Soñador." However, their breakthrough came after issuing a Spanish-language version of Desireless' "Voyage Voyage," a French pop hit from the '80s. In 1992 the boy band played the lead in their own movie, Cambiando el Destino. Magneto won the Lo Nuestro Award for Pop New Artist of the Year, and received two nominations for the Lo Nuestro Awards of 1993: Pop Album (Magneto) and Pop Group of the Year. Nevertheless, the original Magneto disbanded in 1996 after a sold-out show at Mexico City's Auditorio Nacional.

A number of former Magneto members (the group's 1993-1996 lineup of Alan Ibarra, Mauri Stern, Elias Cervantes, Tono Beltranena, and Hugo de la Barreda, better known as Alex) reunited in 2009.

In 2016, Magneto toured with Mercurio, a 1990s Mexican boy band.

A magneto is a permanent magnet electrical generator.

Magneto may also refer to:

"Magneto" is the debut single from the UK rock band, Brigade, off their debut album Lights. It reached #3 on the UK Rock Chart and #134 on the UK Singles Chart.

Magneto is a fictional character created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby. The character first appeared in Strange Tales #84, in May 1961, just before Atlas Comics became Marvel Comics. Even though the character name and creators are the same as the modern Marvel's Magneto, the Atlas Comics character is not related to Marvel's mutant.

A magneto is an electrical generator that uses permanent magnets to produce alternating current. Unlike a dynamo, there is no commutator and so they cannot produce direct current. They are categorised as a form of alternator, although they are usually regarded as distinct from most other alternators, which use field coils rather than permanent magnets.

Magnetos date from the earliest days of electrical engineering. Despite this, they have never been widely applied for the purposes of bulk electricity generation, for the same purposes or to the same extent as either dynamos or alternators. Only in a few specialised cases, as described here, have they been used for power generation.

A magneto is an electrical generator that uses permanent magnets to produce periodic pulses of alternating current. Unlike a dynamo, a magneto does not contain a commutator to produce direct current. It is categorized as a form of alternator, although it is usually regarded as distinct from most other alternators, which use field coils rather than permanent magnets.

Hand-cranked magneto generators were used to provide ringing current in telephone systems. Magnetos were also adapted to produce pulses of high voltage in the ignition systems of some gasoline-powered internal combustion engines to provide power to the spark plugs. Use of such ignition magnetos for ignition is now limited mainly to the following kinds of engines:

• Engines without a low-voltage electrical system, such as lawnmowers and chainsaws.
• Aircraft engines, in which keeping the ignition independent of the rest of the electrical system ensures that the engine continues running in the event of alternator or battery failure. For redundancy, virtually all piston engine aircraft are fitted with two magneto systems, each supplying power to one of two spark plugs in each cylinder.

Magnetos were used for specialized isolated power systems such as arc lamp systems or lighthouses, for which their simplicity was an advantage. Generators connected to an electrical grid for central station power generation do not use the magneto principle.