Floating Ping Pong Ball
Materials: ★☆☆ Easy to get from supermarket or hardware store
Difficulty: ★☆☆ Can be easily done by most teenagers
Safety: ★☆☆ Minimal safety procedures required
Categories: Force, Motion, Pressure and Fluids, Science Shows
Alternative titles: Bernoulli’s Principle with a Ping Pong Ball
Summary
A ping pong ball can be suspended in the air stream of a hair dryer. This demonstrates Bernoulli’s principle, which explains how differences in air pressure keep the ball floating and stable in the moving air.
Procedure
- Plug in a hair dryer and set it to blow air straight upward.
- Hold a ping pong ball above the stream of air and let go.
- Watch as the ball hovers and stays balanced in the air flow.
- Experiment by gently moving the hair dryer sideways or tilting it to see how the ball remains suspended.
Links
How to float a ping pong ball on air - The Coandă Effect - Physics Girl :
Suspended Ping Pong Ball in Stream of Air - Science Made Easy:
📄 Floating ping pong ball - Experiment Archive: https://www.experimentarchive.com/experiments/floating-ping-pong-ball/
Variations
- Use a beach ball with a leaf blower for a science show.
- Place a toilet paper roll on a stick above the air stream to create a paper fountain.
- Position an empty toilet roll over the floating ping pong ball and observe how it is drawn upward.
- Try with a bent straw and a spun cotton ball to create a miniature version.
- Test how many balls you can float at once.
Safety Precautions
- Use caution with the hair dryer - it may become hot after prolonged use.
- Keep hair and loose clothing away from the air intake.
- Do not allow small children to handle the hair dryer without supervision.
- Avoid using near water or in damp environments.
Questions to Consider
- How does Bernoulli’s principle explain why the ball stays in the air stream? (Air moving faster has lower pressure, so higher-pressure surrounding air pushes the ball back into the stream.)
- How much can you tilt the hair dryer before the ball falls out?
- What happens if you try to float two ping pong balls at once?
- Why does adding weight inside a balloon help it float more steadily? (It prevents the balloon from being too light and unstable in the air stream.)