Cyclone Experiment

This is also known as “whirlpool glass” and tornado machine.” It demonstrates to younger children what hurricanes, tornadoes and whirlpools look like.

Two 2-liter plastic soda bottles
Water
Blue food coloring
Glitter (optional)
3 x 5-inch card
Masking tape
Duct or electrical tape
Safety scissors

Wash out the soda bottles and remove their labels. Fill one bottle with water and add a teaspoon of blue food coloring and a few pinches of glitter, if desired. The food coloring and glitter make the cyclone more visible.

Roll the card width-wise so that it will fit in the mouths of the soda bottles. Use masking tape to hold the end of the card in place. Put the rolled-up card in the mouth of the bottle that contains the water. Take the other soda bottle and place its mouth over the rolled-up card, pushing the bottle down so the mouths of both bottles are flush. Tape the mouths of the bottles together with duct or electric tape, making sure that the seal between the two is as waterproof as possible.

Grab the bottles by their bases and turn the “cyclone” upside down. As the water begins to pour from one bottle to the other, gently swing the bottles in a counterclockwise motion until the tornado forms.