Have you got a science nerd in your family ? Then surprise them with a twist to a light refraction science experiment with a valentine themed design and show your love in a unique way.
What you WILL need
- A glass
- Water
- Paper and marker or download the printable
HOW TO DO THE EXPERIMENT
Download the printable HERE or draw the design yourself.
Place the paper with the boy and the girl design behind the glass and look through the empty bottle. What do you see ? There is no change, the boy is facing away from the girl.
Fill the glass with water.
Look through the glass of water from the front again and slowly move the paper back, what do you see ? The boy is facing the girl and looks like he is giving her the flowers.
Isn’t that cool.. so grab the printable and give it a try.
The science behind it
When the image is moved to a certain distance behind the glass, it appears to have reversed itself. When light passes from one material to another, it can bend or refract. In this experiment, light traveled from the air, through the glass, through the water, through the back of the glass, and then back through the air, before reaching the image. And therefore, it’s refracting.
The glass of water acts like a magnifying glass. When light passes through a magnifying glass, the light bends towards the center. Where the light comes together, it is called the focal point. Beyond the focal point the image appears to be reversed because the light rays bent past each other. The light that was on the right side is now on the left and the left on the right, making the image appear reversed.
Watch the Experiment Here
I hope you will surprise your special someone with this valentine themed science experiment on refraction of light. We do have a list of some cool science experiments with water on our blog, so make sure to check them out.
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Happy experimenting !
This is such a fun activity! I didn’t know you could do this.
What a cool experiment! I actually never realized it worked that way.