So many things in life are unpredictable but the weather doesn’t need to be completely unclear. We’re going to make a simple, at-home barometer to allow us to glimpse into upcoming weather patterns!
Meteorology is the study of atmospheric conditions with a focus on forecasting the weather. This is possible because the atmosphere is constantly changing and, as it does, so does the air pressure.
We can use observations with the barometer we’ll make in this experiment to see into the short term future of weather. This can help determine if today is a great day to explore and ride bikes, or stay inside with a good book... or maybe catching up on your favourite STEM-based science KZfaq series!
The downloadable PDF worksheet for this experiment can be found here:
ExplorationStation.net/barometer
-Materials-
Straw
Pencil
Balloon
Ruler
Card Paper (thick paper)
Tape
Rubber Band
Glass jar
Scissors
-Procedure-
Use your scissors to carefully cut the neck off of the balloon.
Pull the balloon over the top of the jar, as tight as you can, and secure it with the rubber band. It’s important that no air is able to escape from the jar.
Use tape to secure the end of the straw to the balloon, making sure that the very end of the straw is in the middle of the jar.
Fold your card stock in half lengthwise and use your ruler to draw lines ½ inch apart, from top to bottom, all along one side of the paper. For reference, you can draw a Sun on the upper area of the lines and some rain drops on the lower area.
Stand the paper up and put the jar next to it, the straw should be against the paper and level with the middle area.
Put your jar in a place where the temperature doesn’t change much; away from windows and vents. If the air in the jar warms up or cools down, it will affect the readings from your barometer.
Sounds from Zapsplat.com
Music from Zapsplat.com
Music from OrangeFreeSounds.com
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