Tornado in a Bottle

In class we had a go a creating a tornado in a bottle. You can read the following instructions to find out what you need to do.

Make a Tornado in a Bottle  

Learn how to make a tornado in a bottle with this fun science experiment for kids. Using easy to find items such as dish washing liquid, water, glitter and a bottle you can make your own mini tornado that’s a lot safer than one you might see on the weather channel. Follow the instructions and enjoy the cool water vortex you create!

What you'll need:

• Water
• A clear plastic bottle with a cap (that won't leak)
• Glitter
• Dish washing liquid

Instructions:

1. Fill the plastic bottle with water until it reaches around three quarters full.
2. Add a few drops of dish washing liquid.
3. Sprinkle in a few pinches of glitter (this will make your tornado easier to see).
4. Put the cap on tightly.
5. Turn the bottle upside down and hold it by the neck. Quickly spin the bottle in a circular motion for a few seconds, stop and look inside to see if you can see a mini tornado forming in the water. You might need to try it a few times before you get it working properly.

What's happening?

Spinning the bottle in a circular motion creates a water vortex that looks like a mini tornado. The water is rapidly spinning around the centre of the vortex due to centripetal force (an inward force directing an object or fluid such as water towards the centre of its circular path). Vortexes found in nature include tornadoes, hurricanes and waterspouts (a tornado that forms over water).

After carrying out our investigations we discussed what we might do if we repeated it, to try to get a bigger vortex that could be clearly be seen. Below are some of our ideas:

• use a smaller bottle that would weigh less and be easier to spin
• use less washing up liquid and more glitter to make it easier to see
• use a glass jar with a lid as Room 16 were able to make bigger vortexes

See if you can find out anything else about tornadoes during the school holidays to share with the class in the first week back.