Making Rainbows
Capture a rainbow to put on your
wall!
Florida summer showers bring
rainbows!. Try this experiment in your kitchen to see if you can
make your very own rainbow.
You Will Need:
Directions:
Step 1: Rest the black construction
paper on the surface of the water in the sink, and then push it 2
cm (3/4”) below the water’s surface.
Step 2: Allow the water to calm.
Step 3: Ask your adult helper to put 2
to 3 drops of clear nail polish on the surface of the water,
directly above the submerged construction paper.
Step 4: Gently reach into the water
and grasp the paper. Keep the paper flat, and very slowly lift it
out of the water.
Step 5: Lay the wet paper in a sunny
spot, or under a direct light source, like a desk lamp, to dry.
Step 6: When the paper is completely
dry, hang it on a wall in a sunny spot. A beautiful rainbow should
appear!
What’s Going On?
Light from both our sun and indoor
lights are forms of white light. White light is actually a
blend of red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, and violet
lights, traveling together. Rainbows are formed when the many
different colors in white light off are sent off in all
directions. One way to form rainbows is by a process called
interference. The thin coating of fingernail polish
coating your sheet interferes, or gets in way, of the
orderly travel of the many colored lights in white light. When
white light from the sun or a strong lamp hits the thin layer of
nail polish on your sheet, all the different colored lights in
white light are sent off in all directions. The scattered colors
appear to us as rainbows!
Have you ever seen a rainbow on a
puddle? This is another example of interference! The white light
from the sun strikes a thin layer of oil floating on the surface
of the water. The oil interferes with the orderly travel of all
the colors in white light and sends them in different directions,
creating rainbows!
Mad Science sparks
the imagination and curiosity of children by providing them with
fun, entertaining and educational activities that instill a clear
understanding of what science is really about and how it affects
the world around them. For more information about thier Birthday
Parties, After-School programs, In-Class workshops, Pre-school
programs, Summer Camps, Corporate events and more call (727)
895-5595 or (813) 655-6643 or visit our website at
www.MadScience.org/wsTampaBay
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