Science Experiment
Science Buoyancy Experiment
Buoyancy Experiment
Does an orange with its peel on float?
Does a peeled orange float?
EQUIPMENT YOU NEED: LARGE BOWL, AN ORANGE AND WATER
Step 1
Fill the bowl with water.
Step 2
Drop the unpeeled orange in to the bowl of water. Does the orange float?
Step 3
Peel the orange. Now drop the peeled orange in to the water. Does the peeled orange float or sink?
The Science Behind It
Why is it that a peeled orange sinks even though it is lighter than an unpeeled orange? The secret lies in its peel!
Buoyancy is the tendency of an object to float or sink in water or any other fluid.
Whether an object is buoyant is determined by Archimedes’ Principle which states that any object in a fluid is buoyed up by a force equal to the weight of the fluid displaced by the object.
When the orange is placed in water, there are two forces working on it in opposite directions: gravitational force pulls the orange down while buoyant force pushes it up.
Gravity pulls the orange down with a force equal to the weight of the orange.