The Physical Meaning of Maxwell’s Equations | The Secrets of the Universe

The Maxwell’s Equations are four coupled differential equations that describe the behavior of electric and magnetic fields. Carl Sagan once said, “Maxwell’s equations have done more good to mankind than any 10 Presidents combined“. This quote shows how important the Maxwell’s equations really are. Maxwell himself did not come up with these equations. He combined these 4 equations to prove that light is an electromagnetic wave. In order to understand Maxwell’s equations, we must know what is divergence and curl. 1. Gauss’ law in electricity: The Gauss’ law in electricity states that the the divergence of electric field is directly proportional to the charge density. This law says that isolated positive or negative charges are responsible for electric fields. 2. Gauss’ law in magnetism: The Gauss’ law in magnetism states that the divergence of magnetic field is zero. This means that magnetic monopoles cannot exist. 3. Faraday’s law: One of the m