No-Spill Bottle Experiment

For this quick science trick, you need a bottle or cup with a bunch of holes, some water, and room to make a splash! With a slo-mo shot (or quick eyes), you’ll see that as long as the bottle is falling, the leak stops. Why? Keep reading!

  1. Ages: 5 - 16

  2. <30 minutes

  3. Super messy

  4. Grownup needed

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Materials you'll need

Step-by-step tutorial

  • Step 1

    Use the pushpin to poke holes around the bottom of the bottle.

    Photo reference of how to complete step 1

  • Step 2

    Pour water into the bottle. To get some good leaks, you’ll want to fill it most of the way.

    Photo reference of how to complete step 2

  • Step 3

    Now… drop it!

    Photo reference of how to complete step 3

  • Step 4

    This is a little hard to see, so we recommend working with a friend to film the drop in slow motion.

    Photo reference of how to complete step 4

  • Learn moremagnifying icon graphic

    In the slo-mo, you’ll see that as long as the bottle is falling, the leak stops. That’s because gravity pulls everything down at the same rate, called the acceleration of gravity. While the bottle is falling, the water can’t leak because, if it did, it would be falling faster than the bottle is.

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