For this experiment you will need; lA tray lballoon (round ones will work, but the longer “airship” balloons work best) llong piece of kite string (about 10-15 feet long) lplastic straw ltape STEPS lTie one end of the string to a chair, door knob, or other support. lPut the other end of the string through the straw. lPull the string tight and tie it to another support in the room. lBlow up the balloon (but don’t tie it.) Pinch the end of the balloon and tape the balloon to the straw as shown above. You’re ready for launch. Let go and watch the rocket fly! So how does it work? It’s all about the air…and thrust. As the air rushes out of the balloon, it creates a forward motion called THRUST. Thrust is a pushing force created by energy. In the balloon experiment, our thrust comes from the energy of the balloon forcing the air out. Different sizes and shapes of balloon will create more or less thrust. In a real rocket, thrust is created by the force of burning rocket fuel as it blasts from the rockets engine – as the engines blast down, the rocket goes up! Let’s make learning fun by experimenting more and more! Agencies
