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It's difficult to see convection currents in any liquid that's undergoing a temperature change, but in this Exploratorium Science Snack, you can see the currents with the help of food coloring.
- 5 to 10 minutes
- 10 to 30 minutes
- 1 cent - $1 per student
- Ages 8 - 18
- Activity
- English
Quick Guide
Materials List (per student)
- Aluminum pie pan
- Hot plate or other heat source with variable settings
- Different colors of water-based food coloring
- Water
- Liquid hand soap or shampoo with a pearlescent or metallic appearance (look for glycol stearate, glycol distearate, or glycerol stearate in the ingredients list)— try a variety as some brands will work better than others
- Several coins of the same denomination (for example, 5 or 6 quarters)
- Safety goggles
Subjects
-
Earth and Space Science
- Astronomy
- Earth Processes
-
Earth Structure
- Oceans and Water
-
Physical Sciences
-
Heat and Thermodynamics
- Heat and Temperature
- Heat Transfer
- Chemistry
-
Structure and Properties of Matter
- Volume and Density
-
Heat and Thermodynamics
Other
This resource is part of:
Access Rights:
- Free access
By:
Rights:
- Creative Commons: Non-commercial Share Alike (by-nc-sa), Exploratorium Teacher Institute,