Marshmallow Catapult - Hurumanu - Science

Marshmallow Catapults

Hypothesis: My hypothesis was that this was going to work and that there will be two energies in this activity. 

Equipment:

1. 1 clean cup
2. 1 balloon
3. 1 pair of scissors
4. 1 marshmallow

Method:

1. Cut the bottom off the cup with the scissors.
2. Cut the balloon halfway along the neck.
3. Stretch the balloon over the bottom of the cup. You may find this a bit tricky to start with, but after making a few it becomes easy.
4. Pop your marshmallow into the cup.
5. Fire the missile by pulling the knotted neck of the balloon back and letting it go. You will be surprised at how far it can travel2
6. The open end will fold together when you stretch the balloon, but this will not stop the missile from firing.

Results (Describe what you saw, take a pic/video): I think that this was a very fun and successful activity. 

This was the photo of how it looked like

Discussion (What were the energy changes happening, explain what you saw): This activity includes two energies which are Elastic and Kinetic Energy. It is elastic energy because I am pulling or stretching the balloon in order to create energy. When pulling a balloon, it is kinetic energy because I am doing a motion while pulling the balloon.

Conclusion (Was your hypothesis correct, did the experiment work?): My conclusion was right, the marshmallow catapult worked. I had heaps of fun playing it with my friends, the two energies I thought of and wrote down were right.

Keywords:        Kinetic Energy     ,      Elastic Energy

- Kinetic energy is due to the motion of objects and people like moving cars, swimming and running. 

- Elastic potential energy is energy stored in stretched or squashed objects like rubbers and springs.