What happens to the force between two magnets as the distance between them increases?

The correct answer is that the force between two magnets decreases according to the inverse square law. This principle states that as the distance between two magnetic objects increases, the strength of the magnetic force acting between them diminishes exponentially. Specifically, the force varies inversely with the square of the distance—meaning if you double the distance between the magnets, the force becomes one-fourth as strong.

This relationship is crucial in understanding how magnetic fields operate. In practice, this means that close magnets will exert a strong attractive or repulsive force on each other, while at greater distances, this force weakens significantly.

The choice indicating that the force remains the same implies that distance has no effect on magnetic interactions, which overlooks the fundamental principles of magnetism. The option suggesting that the force increases contradicts the nature of how magnets interact; as distance increases, attraction or repulsion cannot grow stronger. Finally, stating that the force becomes unpredictable does not accurately reflect the consistent and predictable mathematical relationship defined by the inverse square law in magnetism.