Artwork by Jessica Zhang
Age Recommendation: Any!
Length of Activity: 5-10min
Clouds are so far up in the sky that we are very rarely given an opportunity to see one up close. However on https://www.giftofcuriosity.com/weather-science-how-to-make-a-cloud-in-a-jar/, we found a cool experiment to make a cloud in a jar and be able to observe it up close!
Materials Needed
- Jar
- Matches
- Balloon
- Warm water
- Flashlight
Let’s Go!
First, cut off the top half of your balloon. The end that you blow into should be cut off, leaving the half of the balloon with only one open end.
Then pour warm water into the jar until it reaches ½” in height.
Take the match (with adult supervision of course!) and light it, then put it into the jar until the jar is filled with smoke.
Afterwards, quickly remove the match and secure the balloon on top of the jar so that the jar is sealed.
Push the balloon in towards the jar to increase the pressure inside it and then release.
Finally, you will be able to see clouds forming in the jar. You may want to shine a flashlight at the jar to make it easier to see.
How does it Work?
The warm water poured into the jar releases water vapor that clings on to the smoke particles in the jar. The pressure increase from pushing the balloon in towards the jar helps facilitate the cloud forming process. When a flashlight is shined into the jar, the particles floating around inside the jar (those particles are the clouds) reflect the light, making it easier to see the clouds.
