Dr Kevin Fong uses the reaction of citric acid and bicarbonate of soda to produce carbon dioxide gas, and explains how gasses are affected by gravity.
This clip is from the Royal Institution Christmas Lectures 2015.
Teacher Notes
After watching the clip, you could ask students to research the density of different gases and compare them to the density of the atmosphere at sea level.
Ask them to predict what would happen to a balloon filled with each of these gases.
Searching online will allow you to find clips of model boats made from aluminium foil floating in a tank full of sulfur hexafluoride.
Curriculum Notes
This clip will be relevant for teaching KS3 and GCSE Physics.
This topic appears in OCR, Edexcel, AQA, WJEC KS4/GCSE in England and Wales, CCEA GCSE in Northern Ireland and SQA National 4/5 in Scotland.
More from the Royal Institution Christmas Lectures 2015
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Dr Kevin Fong demonstrates projectile motion, orbit and Newton鈥檚 Third Law.
Using Earth鈥檚 rotation to launch a rocket. video
Dr Kevin Fong demonstrates how a space rocket鈥檚 launch direction affects its success in reaching orbit.
How the vacuum of space affects the human body. video
Dr Kevin Fong does a demonstration to show the lethal effects of a vacuum on the human body.
Resonant Frequency. video
Dr Kevin Fong explains how sound vibrations could pose a real threat astronauts and rockets in space.
Orbital Rendezvous. video
Dr Kevin Fong demonstrates how and why it's so hard for a spacecraft to catch up with the International Space Station.
Why are bones weaker in orbit? video
Kevin Fong explains how micro-gravity can weaken bones. Models are used to show that bones are strong but light, and how low gravity weakens them.
How micro-gravity disorientates us. video
A demonstration of how dizziness occurs during motion sickness or micro-gravity.
The danger of orbital debris. video
Dr Kevin Fong and NASA astronaut Dan Tani explain the danger of space debris.
Demonstrating heat shield material. video
Dr Kevin Fong explains that space capsules heat up due to pressure not friction. He demonstrates a heat shield鈥檚 low thermal conductivity.
Why Earth rock is found on the Moon. video
Dr Kevin Fong demonstrates how debris from meteorites hitting Earth threw Earth rock as far as the Moon, leaving clues there about Earth鈥檚 geological history.
Demonstrating radiation detectors. video
Dr Kevin Fong shows how a Geiger-Muller tube can detect ionising radiation but not the type of radiation, and how detectors on the International Space Station can.
How Earth protects us from radiation. video
Dr Kevin Fong discusses the dangers to astronauts of solar radiation, and how we鈥檙e protected from it by Earth鈥檚 atmosphere and magnetic field.
Why tardigrades can survive in orbit. video
Dr Kevin Fong explains why tardigrades are so resilient when exposed to ionising radiation lethal to most other organisms.
How to recycle urine in space. video
Dr Kevin Fong demonstrates a urine recycling system that works using osmosis, concluding by drinking the liquid that is produced.
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