When we started our experiment, our barometer reading was approximately 13.2 metric units. [1] X Research source Cover the can with plastic wrap. She can also write the day or date next to the line to keep track of the waterline on specific days. Filling a barometer tube takes practice and needs a steady hand but it is well worth trying to master the art. A lamp behind the tube ensures that the tube is seen in silhouette. Secure the plastic wrap with the rubber band. Here's what you'll need: Please copy/paste the following text to properly cite this HowStuffWorks.com article: Copyright © 2021 HowStuffWorks, a division of InfoSpace Holdings, LLC, a System1 Company. Step 8: Record the date and the metric unit on the FREE Daily Barometer Record Log we've included below! Following few simple directions you can make a simple mercury barometer. Atmospheric pressure is an indicator of what type of weather is occuring in your area. Of course, by this time the kids were all back at school (Murphy's Law, right?!). First of all, tape the ruler to the inside of the jar so that you can read the numbers and it stays standing upright. This Instructable shows how to construct a simple barometer to measure atmospheric pressure (barometric pressure). It can be used both for assisting in forecasting weather and for determining altitude. Here are the steps to create a thermometer chart in Excel: Select the data points. Step 1: Cut the balloon about halfway down (you'll be using the larger portion of the balloon for the experiment. Tape the straw to the middle of the plastic wrap so that it will not fall off. Each day we looked at our metric unit and would see a small increase (or even a decrease on a few days which was really interesting but of course, once we looked out the window and saw cloudy skies or rain, we knew the barometer was right). Step 4: Unbend (is that a word) -- or straighten the paper clip. Have your kids act as Citizen Scientists using this FREE Printable Daily Air Pressure worksheet! They learn how … Check the water level in the straw periodically. Place the straw in the center of the cover with about one-third extending past the edge of the … A barometer can only measure air pressure, giving an indication of the expected weather during the following 24 hours. The Homemade Barometer Part 3. Here are the items we used to make our own barometer: As I mentioned, Calpurnia used a glass jar (similar to what we would know as a mason jar) for her barometer so that can also be used in place of the tin can. Some of my students struggled with the fact that I did not tell them how to build the barometer, I simply gave them the materials for building a barometer. To use a Fortin barometer, the level of mercury is set to zero by using the thumbscrew to make an ivory pointer (O in the diagram) just touch the surface of the mercury. I'm fond of this project, because it can be done in any setting. Check the toothpick's position every now and then. Students will follow directions for building barometer. The Science of Sound Waves: Make a DIY Gong Experiment, 20 Science Experiments You Can Do in a Jar, By accepting you will be accessing a service provided by a third-party external to https://www.kcedventures.com/. ... Make a Simple Weather Barometer. Make sure the cover is airtight. In this activity, students use their knowledge about air pressure to build a barometer, an instrument that measures atmospheric pressure, which ia also known as barometric pressure.. Air pressure is affected by temperature and density (i.e. Conversely, if the air pressure outside the can is more dense (high pressure), than you'll see the balloon sink down into the can which will cause the coffee stirer & paper clip to rise higher on your ruler -- indicating nicer weather. You may have one around the house and not realize it. ARHSphysics shows viewers how they can build a simple barometer using household items! Use your webcam or camcorder to keep track of weather changes. Calpurnia's barometer readings and her sighting of a rare bird alert her to report these findings to her Grandfather who promptly informs the weather bureau that a hurricane is coming -- the infamous storm that hit Galveston Island in 1900 and considered one of the most deadliest storms in US history! These were two simple ways to create your own barometer and understand the working of a barometer. A barometer is a simple instrument for measuring atmospheric pressure. Using the printable worksheet (get yours below! Students will build a basic barometer for measuring changes in air pressure. Place the straw horizontally or sideways on the plastic wrap so that two-thirds of the straw is on the can. There’s no precise place to make the cut. Students will make predictions about how the pressure will affect their barometer. Hence a simple mercury barometer uses the height of mercury column to measure atmospheric pressure which is measured in cm Hg. Normally, the atmosphere at sea level can support the column of mercury to 29.92 inches. The space at the top of the barometer tube is a vacuum and exerts no … Step 2: Stretch the cut balloon over the top of the tin can. 3) Stretch the balloon so it fits over the mouth of the jar nice and tight – the tighter the better. We also share information about your use of our site with our social media, advertising and analytics partners who may combine it with other information that you’ve provided to them or that they’ve collected from your use of their services. This is also called barometric pressure. Divide a piece of graph paper into 7 columns, one for each day of the week. The Basics of Air Pressure. One day it's raining, the next might bring snow or winds so strong they'll push you right over. Many barometers use Mercury tubes to help measure the air pressure but today we are going to make one that will work using a … Draw a line on the card opposite the spot where the toothpick is pointing. This is an awesome science activity for kids to do on their own and is considered a citizen scientist project since you are collecting & reporting weather data to help others make informed decisions about what to wear or even how to prepare in case of bad weather (similar to the events that happened in the story The Curious World of Calpurnia Tate.). This was not an easy challenge. In the books, Calpurnia is a young girl who enjoys science, however, she's living during 1899 & 1900 when girls are encouraged to grow up to be mothers or possibly teachers -- but not scientists. Use the printable to track the changes in air pressure and report it to the family each day -- they can help everyone decide what to wear or whether they'll need to grab an umbrella on the way out the door ;). How to Make a Homemade Barometer. Guess what happened about a week and a half later? Step 6: Glue the coffee stirer to the the center of your balloon so the end with the paper clip is hanging over the edge of the can. We tracked our air pressure over Spring Break -- so a nice, long 9 day cycle for us. Apart from fun, it will also be a knowledgeable task for you. Information about the device's operating system, Information about other identifiers assigned to the device, The IP address from which the device accesses a client's website or mobile application, Information about the user's activity on that device, including web pages and mobile apps visited or used, Information about the geographic location of the device when it accesses a website or mobile application. The series shares a variety of wonderful picture books & chapter books that link to awesome science activities. You can build a simple air-type or water-type barometer using common household items. Explain to your child that air pressure is what causes the change in water level. Secure the plastic wrap with a rubber band. You can see all types of projects and learn how to get involved in this 12 Amazing Citizen Scientist Projects for Kids post! Think of it this way -- if the air is more dense (high pressure outside of the can), that means the molecules are pushing down on the balloon which causes it to sink into the can. Try this cool & easy science project or STEM activity -- make a barometer to measure air pressure and weather changes! A barometer is a simple instrument for determining the pressure generated by the weight of the atmosphere. Secure the plastic wrap with the rubber band. In general, a mercury barometer can let you know if your immediate future will see clearing or stormy skies, or little change at all, based only on atmospheric pressure. Mercury barometers use a glass tube filled with mercury and inverted over a mercury-filled chamber. The goal of this science experiment is to see HOW the air pressure changes (increases or decreases) and record any weather changes that occur each day. Be sure to visit Inspiration Laboratories to see all the amazing Storybook Science Activities this month too!! The straw will act as … With a homemade barometer, the air is captured inside the can or jar once you secure the balloon to the top. Record what the weather is … If the air pressure outside of the can is less dense than the air inside the can (meaning air pressure is low), the balloon will expand and the paper clip mark will drop lower on your ruler -- low pressure means a better chance for rain and clouds. A classic mercury barometer consists of a glass tube with one end open and the other end sealed close. Simply put, high pressure is likely to drive rain bearing clouds away, low pressure will likely let it in, leading to precipitation (rain). Make sure the cover is airtight. The books are SO engaging and I highly recommend them as read alouds or for kids ages 8 and up. Tape one edge of the index card to the can so the card extends out behind and parallel to the toothpick. 2) Cut the balloon so that you have a nice round part left, without the long end. When I was younger, we had a barometer in one of our fancy lamps in the house (I had NO idea what it was) and my Dad also had one on his fishing boat (which is a very useful place to have a barometer!). How a Barometer Works and Helps Forecast Weather. A barometer measures air pressure: A “rising” barometer indicates increas­ing air pressure; a “falling” barometer indicates decreasing air pressure. Air pressure is the weight of air molecules pushing down on the Earth. Step 9:  Be sure to put your barometer & ruler is a location where it doesn't have to be moved while you're tracking air pressure. Draw the water partially up the straw and seal the top with gum or putty. Cover the can with plastic wrap. The pressure is then read on the column by adjusting the vernier scale so that the mercury just touches the sightline at Z. Yep!! How To Make A Barometer. Materials: Low pressure usually means rainy weather while high pressure means mild cool weather. Calibrate the numbers on the ruler to the true barometric pressure by comparing it with local weather reports. how many air particles in a particular space).. Leave for a few days and note any changes. The most important part of making the barometer is getting a good seal around the rim of the container. © 2021 KC Edventures. Fill the barometer tube with mercury, holding it … Predict the type of weather near you by watching a barometer. Ok, THIS IS A KEY THING -- be sure to write your starting point as soon as you set up the barometer -- because this is where kids will see a change and it's a pretty AWESOME change! Make sure you wash the can. We use cookies to personalise content and ads, to provide social media features and to analyse our traffic. Citizen science is the term used when every day people like you and I participate in research. There were less clouds, the air temperature was warmer and no precipitation. TONS of ways to link books & science together! STEM: Teaches about Atmospheric (Barometric) Pressure and also Charles' Gas Law.. The cover should be tight making the can airtight. Tape or glue the end of the straw to the centre of the balloon and sellotape the pin or cocktail stick to the end. Tape the toothpick to the end of the straw that extends past the can's edge. During a formal citizen science activity, we (non-trained, every day people) would be considered amateur scientists (I love that title!) Tape the ruler securely inside the jar with the numbers facing inside the jar. This science activity is part of the month-long Storybook Science series hosted by Inspiration Laboratories and inspired by a book we read! Tape the straw to the ruler so that it doesn't block the numbers. One up-side to this challenge was that most of the students paired up when they couldn't figure it out. Using scissors, just snip the end of the balloon right off. Cut the neck off of a balloon. Students will participate in a discussion about the materials used and why they were used for this particular design. This is the second book in a wonderful historic fiction series, the first being The Evolution of Calpurnia Tate  (I hope there will be more but no word on that yet). Have her check her barometer bottle when the weather changes. Here are students discussing possible barometer designs. Place the straw in the center of the cover with about one-third extending past the edge of the can. From page 30 of The Curious World of Calpurnia Tate: "Our next lesson involved something called air pressure that you measured with a barometer.... We'll need a jar, a balloon, a rubber band, a straw, a sewing needle, a metric ruler, and a pot of glue.". Add several evenly-spaced marks above and below the original line. You want to create an airtight seal and a smooth surface. When the atmospheric pressure is low, i.e., your scale shows lower measurements you can predict a rough weather and possibility of a storm. All rights reserved. Both the straw and the toothpick are horizontal. I was a little leary about using a glass jar as we were considering placing the barometer outside in an uncovered area (and we have quite a few backyard critters). In this second book, Calpurnia's Grandfather assigns her the project of making her own barometer so she can collect weather measurements each day. Students investigate the weather from a systems approach, learning how individual parts of a system work together to create a final product. Just be sure to record the date & the metric units on the first day you set up your barometer! Step 5: Slide the paper clip into the coffee stirer. The aneroid barometer makes use of a small sealed chamber connected to a pointer mechanism. A barometer can be made by filling up a long glass tube with mercury, then turning it upside down in a bath of mercury as shown. This is actually an awesome STEM activity since: The entire Homemade Barometer project is actually outlined in the wonderful book The Curious World of Calpurnia Tate! Step 1: Cut the balloon about halfway down (you'll be using the larger portion of the balloon for the experiment. Procedure. In Part 2 of this series on How To Make A Barometer,you'll find how to make a barometer (actually two barometers)in much the same way that Evangelista Torricelli did whenhe invented the barometer in 1643.We'll forget that the original invention came by accident while he was investigatingthe production of a vacuum. Ask her to mark the water level on the side of the cup using a marker. First, you need to get a container that is the height of an index card. Directions on How to Make Your Own Barometer: 1) Set the glass jar on a straight, firm surface. ), kids can track the daily changes and also record their weather observations each day. A barometer measures atmospheric pressure. The book does an AMAZING job of outlining the details for creating a homemade barometer! Tape some card behind the barometer and mark where the pin is. If the weather has gotten clearer, the water level in the cup should have fallen and the level in the bottle should have risen. They learn how a barometer works to measure the Earth's air pressure by building a model using simple materials. When air is heated by the Sun, the air particles move faster and expand. and assist in collecting data that would be sent to an actual scientist for analysis and reporting. Since everything within the Earth's atmosphere is impacted by gravity, even air has weight. I'm happy to report that our tin can barometer works amazingly well! A barometer is a weather instrument that measures the changes in atmospheric pressure or air pressure. You can make your own weather predictions by following changes in barometic pressure. When the barometer readings fall, it indicates low pressure which usually shows in the way of clouds, winds and precipitation (so basically, a bad weather day ;), When the barometric pressure rises, it means fair weather (or a nicer day!). A barometer works by showing us whether the air pressure (or atmospheric pressure) is rising or falling. Tape an index card to the can behind the straw. a tin can, a balloon, a rubber band, glue, two plastic straws or coffee stirrers, construction paper, and an index card. Step 3: Secure the balloon using the rubber band so it won't slip off. There are SO many great Citizen Scientist projects that kids and families can be part of -- counting birds that visit your yard, collecting data on bees or ladybugs, tracking the type of cloud or weather changes. Calpurnia ignores most societal norms and begins to work with her grandfather who is a naturalist and respected scientist. It was 15.2 when we moved into some nicer weather! Kids can use items from around the house to make their own homemade barometer and track air pressure along with weather changes (and try their hand at predicting what the weather will be tomorrow!). We followed the passage and were able to create our own within minutes -- we made a few substitutes (for example, using a paper clip for the sewing needle and a tin can in place of the glass jar) that was used in the story. As discussed, a barometer is a type of instrument that measures the air pressure. You can also look online for the actual barometric pressure readings and track those too. Well, you don’t need to be a weather expert to understand the weather patterns. Make sure the straw doesn't touch the bottom of the jar. This post may include affiliate links. A suitable screen can be made of tracing paper in a wooden frame. You just want to make sure that the opening will be large enough to fit over the mouth of your jar. I'm including affiliate links to the book we used along with other items that helped us during our experiment too. Check the barometer after a couple of days. If purchases are made using these links, we may receive a small commission, at no additional cost to you! It was fairly cloudy the day we built it and we had some light rain come in during the afternoon. Her grandfather introduces her to all types of science, allows her to use his science tools (like these 10 Awesome Outdoor Science Tools for Kids) and encourages her to journal and track everything. To make your own barometer, find a jar, some water, a metric ruler, a drinking straw, some good tape that will work even when wet, and chewing gum (pick a flavor you like). Then come back here. As you can see, we started with a red balloon but I cut it too low so you may have to use more than one to get the correct sizing. Please see our full, How to Make a Barometer: DIY Science Project, 10 Awesome Outdoor Science Tools for Kids, 12 Amazing Citizen Scientist Projects for Kids, we will be building the barometer (engineering), and calculating the daily measurements (math), balloons (you may need a few - I'll explain why below). The higher it points the greater the barometric pressure, and vice versa. Click the Insert tab. It should fit in snuggly but if it's loose, be sure to glue it in place. We didn't observe any huge jump for readings in one day either. Make sure the mouth of the bottle is not touching the bottom of the cup, but is at least below the waterline. Make Your Own Water Barometer or Weather Glass. A rise in the level indicates an increase in barometric pressure, and vice versa. Basically, a barometer is an instrument that is used for the measurement of atmospheric pressure. Students analyze the changes in barometer measurements over time and compare those to actual weather conditions. Air Pressure and How It Affects the Weather. Students investigate the weather from a systems approach, learning how individual parts of a system work together to create a final product. Step 7: Stand your ruler next to your barometer so the paper clip is pointing to the metric side of the ruler. Cover the top of your container with plastic wrap. You consent to our cookies if you continue to use our website. Your best bet is to get an empty soup can of food can. Coke Can Barometer (and Charles' Law Demonstrator) A quick and easy science project using simple materials found around the home. The Sun heats the Earth unevenly. So, as the air pressure outside the can changes, you will see the balloon either rise above the top of the can or sink into the can. Barometer - Measure Air Pressure. Since we are NOT gathering an exact reading, don't be overly concerned with where your paper clip points on the ruler. Let's start with an air-based -- or aneroid -- barometer. Like our DIY Tornado in a Bottle experiment, today's science activity is all about the weather! For this project you'll need: Now let's make a water-based barometer. This simple tool is a wonderful way to observe and learn about changes in air pressure. Just in case you or your kids have never seen one, they have a huge variety of barometers on Amazon -- some are dials, some are glass jars with mercury, others are digital and they even have barometer apps for your phone now! Barometers are designed to be used indoors, so you do not need access to the outdoors. In the Charts group, click on the ‘Insert Column or Bar chart’ icon. When I was younger, we had a barometer in one of our fancy lamps in the house (I had NO idea what it was) and my Dad also had one on his fishing boat (which is a very useful place to have a barometer!)