Space and Rockets

Try this at home

Rocket Balloon

You Will Need

• A long piece of string or fishing line
• Straight drinking straw
• Sticky tape
• Balloon
• Two chairs

What to Do

• Thread the straw onto the string and tie it taught between the two chairs.
• Tape the balloon underneath the straw with its nozzle pointing towards the closest end of the string.
• Countdown from 10 to 0 and let your balloon rocket go!

What's Happening

The air rushing out of the balloon in one direction pushes the balloon in the opposite direction. This works just like a real rocket, except the real rocket pushes a lot harder, which means they can go a lot faster!

Discover More

Is your balloon rocket powerful enough to carry things across the room? Try this by attaching a small box under the balloon and put things in it. If it’s not powerful enough, try using two balloons!