Rocket 

Balloon
To create a rocket balloon, you'll need the following items:

 Balloon (any size)

 Piece of string (10 to 25 feet, or shorter if your space is limited)
 Straight drinking straw
 Scotch tape

Set-Up String & Straw

You have to create a "track" for the rocket balloon to run on. You begin by tying one end of the string to
a tree, post, chair, or other sturdy support.

Slide the free end of the string through the drinking straw.

Tie the other end of the string to another support (generally at the same height, so the string is
horizontal). Make sure the string is taut when tied down.

Move the straw to one end of the string.

Prepare Balloon
Inflate the balloon. Pinch the neck to keep it full.

Using two pieces of Scotch tape, attach the inflated balloon to the straw. The mouth of the
balloon should point toward the nearest support.

Release Balloon
Release the balloon and watch it go!

Scientific Explanation: Why the Rocket Balloon Works

The balloon, which is made of an elastic material, contracts on the air within the balloon. When the
mouth of the balloon is held (or tied) closed, the air has nowhere to go, so it pushes back to retain the
balloon's shape.

However, since the mouth is open, the air has somewhere to go. The air pushes out the mouth
of the balloon. Since the air is now moving, the rocket balloon also moves. This follows both
Newton's Third Law of Motion ("for every action there's an equal and opposite reaction") and
the law of conservation of momentum.

There is friction between the string and the straw, but the straw is made of material with a low
coefficient of friction (because it's smooth) and the weight of the balloon and straw is light, so
the overall frictional force is effectively negligible.
This is essentially the same principle upon which rockets work. They burn fuel to propel matter
out the back forcefully. The rocket moves in response to this. Since a rocket typically weighs
much more than a balloon, of course, it takes more propellant to get it moving.

Cosmic Ray Detector
Gather Your Materials

You'll need the following materials to build the cosmic ray detector:

 Scissors
 Black heavy felt
 Clean, empty glass jar with a rubber washer or cardboard filler under the lid
 Ruler
 Rubber cement
 Rubbing alcohol
 Two towels
 Pie tin
 Rubber gloves
 Block of dry ice (enough to fill pie tin)
 Hammer
 Ice tongs
 Flashlight
 Three books (preferably not valuable, as masking tape will be used on them)
 Masking tape
 Small magnet

This experiment can be kind of tricky and may need to be conducted a couple of times to get it right.
Some materials, such as dry ice, may be difficult to get hold of and should be handled with care. We
recommend that you ask a responsible adult for help in conducting this experiment.

Glue Felt to Bottom of Jar

1. Cut the felt in a circle to fit in the bottom of the jar.

2. Glue the felt in place with rubber cement.
3. Cut a 1-inch wide strip of felt and place it along the inside wall of the jar's bottom.

Glue Velvet to Top of Jar

1. Cut a 1-inch wide strip of velvet and glue it (with rubber cement) around the top inside wall of
the jar
 2. Cut a circle of velvet to fit inside the lid, over the rubber or cardboard, and glue it in place.

Soak Felt with Rubbing Alcohol

1. Pour rubbing alcohol into the jar. The felt should become saturated with the alcohol and it
should cover the bottom of the jar.
2. Screw the lid on the jar tightly and let it sit for 10 minutes while you continue with the next
steps.

Prepare Pie Tin

1. Lay a towel on a flat surface, placing the pie tin on top of it.
2. Put on the rubber gloves (so you don't touch the dry ice directly).
3. Wrap the second towel around the block of dry ice.
4. Use the hammer to break the dry ice. (Be sure this is done on a sturdy, safe surface.)
5. Use the ice tongs to place the chunks of dry ice in the pie tin. Try to create a relatively flat
surface in the pie tin. You may need to break the dry ice up a bit more to achieve this.

Set Up Detector

1. Once the jar has sat for 10 minutes, turn it upside down and place it top down on the dry ice in
the center of the pie tin. Remember, the dry is should hopefully be level.
Note: I'll keep referring to the "top" and "bottom" of the jar, even though it's upside down. The
"top" is the side that's on the dry ice now, with the lid. The "bottom" is the glass side, which is
pointing upward.
2. Position the flashlight on the books so that the beam aims through the "lower" half (near the
felt bottom) of the jar. You may not need all three books to do this. Use the masking tape to
secure the flashlight in place at the right angle.
3. Turn off the lights.
4. Cover the "bottom" (i.e. glass end) of the jar with the palm of your hand.
5. Watch and wait.

What Happens & Why?

What Happens?
Within five minutes, you should see a rain of fine mist inside the jar as the alcohol, warmed by your
hand, condenses within the jar. After another five minutes, the miss will decrease.

A bit later, you'll see cobweb-like threads appearing and disappearing at various angles about
an inch above the lid. You can bring the magnet against the side of the jar and the trails will
deflect toward it.

Why?
In outer space there are objects, such as supernovas and pulsars, that send out burst of cosmic
radiation. This is high-energy particle radiation, but it's not harmful. These cosmic rays fly through space
at nearly the speed of light. Trillions of such particles pass through the Earth's atmosphere every few
minutes, and three to six cosmic ray particles strike each square inch of the earth's atmosphere every
second. These cosmic rays are, in fact, flying through your body right now.

In the jar, the warmth of your hand heats the "bottom" while the dry ice cools the "top."
Somewhere between the two extremes, usually about 1 or 2 inches from the "bottom," the air
becomes saturated with alcohol vapor. When cosmic rays pass through this portion of the jar,
they cause the alcohol to condense, creating the web-like threads. Because the cosmic
radiation is electrically charged, the magnet can cause the threads to move.

Surface Tension Physics Experiments & Tricks

Quarters in a Full Glass of Water

This is a neat trick! Ask friends how many quarters can go in a completely full glass of water before it
overflows. The answer will generally be one or two. Then follow the steps below to prove them wrong.

Needed materials:

 10 to 12 Quarters
 glass full of water

The glass should be filled to the very rim, with a slightly convex shape to the surface of the liquid.

Slowly, and with a steady hand, bring the quarters one at a time to the center of the glass. Place
the narrow edge of the quarter in the water and let go. (This minimizes disruption to the
surface, and avoids forming unnecessary waves that can cause overflow.)

As you continue with more quarters, you will be astonished how convex the water becomes on
top of the glass without overflowing!

Possible Variant: Perform this experiment with identical glasses, but use different types of
coins in each glass. Use the results of how many can go in to determine a ratio of the volumes
of different coins.

Floating Needle
Another nice surface tension trick, this one makes it so that a needle will float on the surface of a glass
of water. There are two variants of this trick, both impressive in their own right.

Needed materials:
  fork (variant 1)
 piece of tissue paper (variant 2)
 sewing needle
 glass full of water

Variant 1 Trick

Place the needle on the fork, gently lowering it into the glass of water. Carefully pull the fork
out, and it is possible to leave the needle floating on the surface of the water.

This trick requires a real steady hand and some practice, because you must remove the fork in
such a way that portions of the needle do not get wet ... or the needle will sink. You can rub the
needle between your fingers beforehand to "oil" it increase your success chances.

Variant 2 Trick

Place the sewing needle on a small piece of tissue paper (large enough to hold the needle). The
needle is placed on the tissue paper. The tissue paper will become soaked with water and sink
to the bottom of the glass, leaving the needle floating on the surface.

Put Out Candle with a Soap Bubble

This trick demonstrates how much force is caused by the surface tension in a soap bubble.

Needed materials:

 lit candle (NOTE: Do not play with matches without parental approval and supervision!)
 funnel
 detergent or soap-bubble solution

Coat the funnel mouth (the large end) with the detergent or bubble solution, then blow a bubble using
the small end of the funnel. With practice, you should be able to get a nice big bubble, about 12 inches
in diameter.

Place your thumb over the small end of the funnel. Carefully bring it toward the candle.
Remove your thumb, and the surface tension of the soap bubble will cause it to contract,
forcing air out through the funnel. The air forced out by the bubble should be enough to put
out the candle.

For a somewhat related experiment, see the Rocket Balloon.

Motorized Paper Fish

This experiment from the 1800's was quite popular, as it shows what seems to be sudden movement
caused by no actual observable forces.
Needed materials:

 piece of paper
 scissors
 vegetable oil or liquid dishwasher detergent
 a large bowl or loaf cake pan full of water

In addition, you will need a pattern for the Paper Fish. To spare you my attempt at artistry, check out
this example of how the fish should look. Print it out - the key feature is the hole in the center and the
narrow opening from the hole to the back of the fish.

Once you have your Paper Fish pattern cut out, place it on the water container so it floats on
the surface. Put a drop of the oil or detergent in the hole in the middle of the fish.

The detergent or oil will cause the surface tension in that hole to drop. This will cause the fish
to propel forward, leaving a trail of the oil as it moves across the water, not stopping until the
oil has lowered the surface tension of the entire bowl.

The table below demonstrates values of surface tension obtained for different liquids at various
temperatures.

Experimental Surface Tension Values

Liquid in contact Temperature Surface Tension (mN/m,
with air (degrees C) or dyn/cm)

Benzene 20 28.9

Carbon
20 26.8
tetrachloride

Ethanol 20 22.3

Glycerin 20 63.1

Mercury 20 465.0

Olive oil 20 32.0

Soap solution 20 25.0

Water 0 75.6

Water 20 72.8

Water 60 66.2
Water 100 58.9

Oxygen -193 15.7

Neon -247 5.15

Helium -269 0.12

Rubber Band Powered Flying Machines

The Bottom Line
This kit allows for the creation of some great rubber band powered, propeller-driven flying machines. It's
a great all-in-one kit to build airplanes and learn the science behind flight. You don't get a lot of control
over how they fly, and a couple of serious crashes will destroy the wings beyond repair, but until then
you'll have some great fun with them and get some hands-on experience with aerodynamic concepts.

Pros

 A great introduction to propeller-driven airplanes, powered by rubber bands.

 Excellent prelude to remote control airplanes, so you can learn principles of aerodynamics.

Cons

 Wings are very flimsy and may not last many flights without requiring repair.
 No direct control over the flight path.

Description

 Created by Pat Murphy and the Scientists of Klutz Labs

 Contains everything needed to create three different airplane designs - Firebird, Shooting Star,
and Lightning Looper
 Designed for ages 8 and up

Guide Review - Rubber Band Powered Flying Machines

This kit from Klutz Labs is one of the most fun aeronautics kits that I've worked with. It's more complex
than their Foam Glider or Foam Rocket designs, which makes sense because it's intended for an older
age range. The result is a much more sophisticated flying experience than either of those machines, but
also one which runs the risk of a much shorter shelf life ... because these planes have a much greater
chance of unexpectedly colliding with a tree, fence, or other obstacle.
The kit includes the parts and instructions for creating three different styles of airplanes:
Firebird, Shooting Star, and Lightning Looper.

The book has a lot of material about the science of the underlying aeronautics principles behind
the different designs, and how to perform tweaks and customizations that will impact the flight
path of the planes.

As opposed to some other kits, this is an excellent all-in-one set to introduce students to the
principles behind flight.

One of the coolest thing about this is just holding the airplane as the rubber band causes the
propeller to twirl, creating life. When you let go of the airplane, the plane just instantly pulls
forward and flies up into the air. It's really fun to watch the plane flying through the air, in a
way that just a glider can't come even close to capturing, no matter how many loop the loops
you can customize it into doing. Seeing all of this running off of a simple rubber band is just
great.

The biggest drawback of this kit is that the wings just aren't that strong, so a few collisions - or
even indelicate handling while carrying the plane - can easily damage the wings so severely that
further flights aren't possible. We had problems with the wings of the Firebird after just two
flights and had to tape it up pretty heavily, and then my son bent one of the wings while picking
it up and it never flew straight again.

Despite the difficulties of working with the wings, the kit results in three great planes that have
their own virtues. Kids can really have fun with them, as long as care is taken to keep them
intact. With some extra tools - clear tape, pliers, and maybe a stick to get the plane out of trees
when it gets stuck - you can keep flying in fun and exciting ways for quite some time.