Download Big Bang Balloon Lab

Name(s) ____________________________
Date _____________
Class __________
Big Bang Balloon Lab
http://www.discoveryschool.com/curriculumcenter/universe
Problem:
Is the Universe really expanding?
Hypothesis: The farther something is from Earth, the (faster, slower) it seems to be moving away.
Materials:
* 9 or 12-inch round latex balloon
* A permanent marker
* 24-inch piece of string
* Ruler
Directions:
1. Inflate your balloon until it is about 4-inches in diameter . . . do NOT tie the end.
2. Using the marker, make four dots on the balloon in widely scattered locations.
3. Label one dot “home” and the others A – E. The home dot represents the Milky Way galaxy; the others represent
galaxies formed millions of years ago.
4. Do not let the air out of the balloon.
5. Use the string and ruler to measure the distance from “home” to each dot. Record the distances on your
observation chart under the heading “Trial 1.”
6. Inflate the balloon so that it’s about 2 inches bigger.
7. Measure and record the distances from “home” to each dot under “Trial 2” on the chart.
8. Inflate the balloon two more times. After each inflation, measure and record the distances on the chart.
Observations:
Galaxy
Distance from “Home”
Trial 1
Trial 2
Trial 3
Dot A
Dot B
Dot C
Dot D
Dot E
Conclusion:
1. What do the dots represent?
2. How did the distance from the home dot (Milky Way) change each time you inflated the balloon?
3. Which galaxies appeared to move the greatest distance? Closer to home or farther away?
4. What was the variable in this experiment? What did you change?
5. The Doppler Effect states that the “blue shift” of the star spectra (bands of color) shows the object is moving
closer to earth. What does the “red shift” of star spectra tell us about the movement of distant
galaxies? Do they move( away from, towards) Earth?
6. In this experiment, did the “galaxies” undergo a blue shift or a red shift? Explain your answer.
Name(s) ____________________________
Date _____________
Class __________
Big Bang Balloon Lab
http://www.discoveryschool.com/curriculumcenter/universe
Problem:
Is the Universe really expanding?
Hypothesis: The farther something is from Earth, the (faster, slower) it seems to be moving away.
Materials:
* 9 or 12-inch round latex balloon
* A permanent marker
* 24-inch piece of string
* Ruler
Directions:
1. Inflate your balloon until it is about 4-inches in diameter . . . do NOT tie the end.
2. Using the marker, make four dots on the balloon in widely scattered locations.
3. Label one dot “home” and the others A – E. The home dot represents the Milky Way galaxy; the others represent
galaxies formed millions of years ago.
4. Do not let the air out of the balloon.
5. Use the string and ruler to measure the distance from “home” to each dot. Record the distances on your
observation chart under the heading “Trial 1.”
6. Inflate the balloon so that it’s about 2 inches bigger.
7. Measure and record the distances from “home” to each dot under “Trial 2” on the chart.
8. Inflate the balloon two more times. After each inflation, measure and record the distances on the chart.
Observations:
Galaxy
Distance from “Home”
Trial 1
Trial 2
Trial 3
Dot A
Dot B
Dot C
Dot D
Dot E
Conclusion:
1. What do the dots represent?
2. How did the distance from the home dot (Milky Way) change each time you inflated the balloon?
3. Which galaxies appeared to move the greatest distance? Closer to home or farther away?
4. What was the variable in this experiment? What did you change?
5. The Doppler Effect states that the “blue shift” of the star spectra (bands of color) shows the object is moving
closer to earth. What does the “red shift” of star spectra tell us about the movement of distant
galaxies? Do they move( away from, towards) Earth?
6. In this experiment, did the “galaxies” undergo a blue shift or a red shift? Explain your answer.