Editing Electrostatic generator (section)

{{short description|Device that generates electrical charge on a high voltage electrode}}
[[File:Van de graaff generator sm.jpg|thumb|right|alt= Large metal sphere supported on a clear plastic column, inside of which a rubber belt can be seen. A smaller sphere is supported on a metal rod. Both are mounted to a baseplate, on which there is a small driving electric motor.|A [[Van de Graaff generator]], for classroom demonstrations]]
[[File:Spark With New Winquist Neutralizers (49693486901).jpg|thumb|12" Quadruple Sector-less Wimshurst Machine (Bonetti Machine)]]
An '''electrostatic generator''', or '''electrostatic machine''', is an [[electric generator|electrical generator]] that produces ''[[static electricity]]'', or electricity at [[high voltage]] and low [[continuous current]]. The knowledge of static electricity dates back to the earliest civilizations, but for millennia it remained merely an interesting and mystifying [[phenomenon]], without a theory to explain its behavior and often confused with magnetism. By the end of the 17th century, researchers had developed practical means of generating electricity by friction, but the development of electrostatic machines did not begin in earnest until the 18th century, when they became fundamental instruments in the studies about the new science of [[electricity]].

Electrostatic generators operate by using manual (or other) power to transform [[mechanical work]] into [[electric energy]], or using [[electric current]]s. Manual electrostatic generators develop [[electrostatic]] [[electrical charge|charge]]s of opposite signs rendered to two conductors, using only electric forces, and work by using moving plates, drums, or belts to carry electric charge to a high [[Electric potential|potential]] [[electrode]].