CD Hovercraft

For older kids

Time: 15-20 mins

The CD hovercraft is an easy yet super fun project that can make a CD float above the ground and magically slide around all on its own!

Materials:

A fairly small bottle cap

Hot glue (but regular glue should also work)

A CD

A balloon

Steps:

1. First, poke a small hole about a quarter inch wide into the bottle cap. Warning: This is dangerous, so make sure to use an adult’s help if needed!

2. Next, use your hot glue gun or regular glue to connect the bottle cap to the middle of the CD. Again, if you are using a hot glue gun, make sure to have an adult help you if needed!

3. Blow up the balloon, and twist the end of it to hold the air in.

4. Now comes the hard part: take the end of the balloon, and put it over the bottle cap. It should take a few tries, but if you’re gentle and careful, you should be able to do it. It just takes a little practice!

5. While keeping the balloon’s end twisted, set your new hovercraft on a very flat surface, preferably a floor.

6. Let go of the balloon to let it untwist, and watch as the CD magically hovers over the floor!

How does it work?

The CD hovercraft looks like it’s floating magically, but actually, there’s a lot of science and physics involved! Basically, as the balloon untwists and shoots out air, the air spreads across the CD, creating a “layer” of air between the CD and the floor. This means that there is no friction between the CD and the floor, so your hovercraft glides easily!