Asklemmy

Yes, your statement is quite accurate. The field of magnetism, like many areas of physics, continues to provide plenty of mysteries and unanswered questions.

Monopoles, magnets with only one pole, are a purely theoretical concept at this point. They were first proposed in the context of quantum mechanical systems, and the equations of electromagnetism do allow for their existence. However, despite many years of searching, no monopoles have been detected so far in the real world.

As for understanding how magnets work, we do have a rather good grasp on this from the framework of classical electrodynamics (Maxwell's Equations) and quantum mechanics. It involves the alignment of electron spins in certain materials, creating a net magnetic field.

However, like many theories, while it predicts observable phenomena remarkably well, it still doesn't answer every question we have about the nature of magnets. It should also be noted that our understanding of magnetism (and most physical phenomena) is based on models which are representations of reality and not the utter, standalone truth. So there is always room for additional discovery and understanding.

Remember, the lack of a complete explanation doesn't necessitate that our current understanding is incorrect, it merely implies it may not be complete. Science is an ongoing process of learning, refinement, and discovery.