Tenth Grade, Physics Science Experiments (Page 22)

Speedy Science: How Does Constant Acceleration Affect Distances Traveled?

STEM Activity

1

2

3

4

5

23 reviews

Have you ever dropped something and wondered how fast it was moving while falling? If it was something fragile, like a cell phone, you might not have been thinking about this at the time – you were likely too busy trying to grab the phone! But you probably wanted to find out how hard it hit the ground afterwards. We all know that gravity forces an object to fall, but how does this affect how quickly something falls and its impact? For example, did the phone move faster right after leaving… Read more

Stick With It – Put Your Duct Tape To The Test!

STEM Activity

1

2

3

4

5

2 reviews

You may have heard of the space shuttle Apollo 13, or seen the movie about the amazing survival of the ship’s crew after an explosion aboard the ship. What you may not know, is that duct tape helped save the lives of the Apollo 13 crew! NASA had to figure out a way to keep the 3 crew members alive in a tiny lunar module that was only meant to hold 2 people for 36 hours. They instructed the crew to build life-saving air filters using cardboard, plastic bags, space suit parts and –… Read more

Suck it Up – with Cooling Air!

STEM Activity

1

2

3

4

5

2 reviews

You might know that many objects expand, or get bigger, when they get hot, and shrink when they cool down. For example, this is true for metals, wood, and concrete. But did you know that gases such as air can do the same? It is just difficult to see when it happens. This activity will let you “see” air contract using water! Read more

Swing Low: Investigate the Motion of a Pendulum

STEM Activity

1

2

3

4

5

10 reviews

Did you know that playground swings can provide a good lesson in physics—as well as lots of fun? The back-and-forth motion of a swing is an example of a pendulum. We see pendulums in other areas of our lives as well, such as in grandfather (also known as longcase) clocks. But pendulums can do more than provide fun at recess and help tell the time—among other scientific applications, they can show that the earth is huge! This is because the swinging motion of a pendulum is due to… Read more

The Joly Photometer: Measuring Light Intensity Using the Inverse Square Law

Science Fair Project Idea

Scientific Method

You have probably seen light bulbs with different wattages, for example 50 W or 100 W. Higher-wattage lights are brighter but they also consume more electrical power. Are some bulbs more efficient than others, meaning they produce more light per unit of electrical power? You can find out for yourself by making a simple photometer to compare the light output from different bulbs. This project shows you how. Read more

The Physics of Simulation vs Reality

Science Fair Project Idea

Scientific Method

Science Buddies has many projects where you build something with moving parts or do an experiment with the physics of moving objects. Here are just a few examples, but this is not an exhaustive list! You can search our site to find many more. Ball launcher (Figure 1) Marble roller coaster (Figure 2) Rube Goldberg machine (Figure 3) Build A Wall Marble Run (Figure 4) Figure 1. A catapult-style ball launcher. … Read more

Turn Soot into Silver

STEM Activity

1

2

3

4

5

3 reviews

You might have heard the saying “not everything is as it seems.” Something might look great from far away, but when you take a closer look, it might not turn out to be as beautiful as you thought! In this activity, you will create the opposite experience—you will turn a spoon blackened with soot into shiny silver. Even though it is only an illusion, you will not know it when you see it. Try it out for yourself! Read more

Using a Laser Pointer to Measure the Data Track Spacing on CDs and DVDs

Science Fair Project Idea

Scientific Method

You've probably noticed the colorful patterns "reflecting" from the shiny surface of a CD disk. What you are seeing is actually diffraction of white light, and the rainbows of color are diffraction patterns. In this project you'll learn about how diffraction patterns are generated, and you'll find out how you can use a laser pointer and a protractor to measure the microscopic spacing of data tracks on a CD. Read more

Water Striders & Surface Tension

Science Fair Project Idea

Scientific Method

Water striders (also called water bugs, pond skippers, etc.) are insects that can hop around on the surface of water (Figure 1). Unlike boats or other floating objects that are partially submerged and held up by the resulting buoyant force, water striders are held up by surface tension. Figure 1. Water striders (image credit Isaka Yoji). You can build your own water striders using thin wire (Figure 2 and summary video). Do some background research about… Read more

What is the Cheapest Way to Launch Payloads into Space?

Science Fair Project Idea

Engineering Design Process

A mass driver is a proposed device that could launch payloads into space using a long tube lined with electromagnets (Figure 1). Some scientists argue that such a launch system would offer long-term cost savings over the use of chemical rockets. Scientists have proposed theoretical electromagnetic launcher designs as far back as the 1970s (O'Neill 1979). More recently, some have proposed the use of railguns originally developed for the U.S. Navy (McNab and McGlasson 2022). Other types of… Read more

Tenth Grade, Physics Science Experiments (223 results)

Explore Our Science Videos