Tornado in a jar Follow FizzicsEd 150 Science Experiments: Comments 3 You will need: A glass jar with a lid Detergent Water Written by Fizzics Education. Reviewed by Ben Newsome CF. Cite this experiment Copyright Notice Instruction 1 Fill the glass jar almost completely with water, leaving a small air space at the top of the jar. Now add a small amount of detergent. 2 Ensuring that the lid is tight, grip the top of the jar and give the jar a quick shake up and down to get some bubbles to form. Now, quickly swirl the jar around for a couple of seconds. The swirling motion is best done if the bottom of the jar swirls wider than the top of the jar. 3 Stop swirling the jar and you should see a bubble tornado! 4 School science visits since 2004! – Curriculum-linked & award-winning incursions. – Over 40 primary & high school programs to choose from. – Designed by experienced educators. – Over 2 million students reached. – Face to face incursions & online programs available. – Early learning centre visits too! 5 Online courses for teachers & parents – Help students learn how science really works 6 Get the Unit of Work on Pressure here! Want to dive into air pressure? It’s all about air pressure in many ways! From how storms form to how planes fly, this unit covers many concepts about air pressure. Includes cross-curricular teaching ideas, student quizzes, a sample marking rubric, scope & sequences & more What is going on? The Physics of a Tornado in a Jar This experiment is a fantastic demonstration of momentum, centripetal force, and friction! When you swirl the jar, you impart a force onto the liquid, causing the water to push outwards against the glass. Once you stop swirling, friction begins to slow down the water that is touching the edges of the jar. However, the water in the middle keeps moving. The water is pulled into a funnel-shaped vortex by centripetal force, which directs the liquid towards the centre of the jar. As the water moves inward, it speeds up due to the conservation of angular momentum. This is the same reason an ice skater spins faster when they pull their arms in! The combination of these forces creates the spinning vortex you see in the jar. Variable testing Find out more about variable testing here. Viscosity Try different liquids, such as oil or syrup. Can you still form a stable vortex in thicker, more viscous liquids, or does friction slow them down too quickly? Surface Tension Does it matter if there is no detergent? Detergent helps reveal the vortex by creating tiny bubbles that get trapped in the flow, but does the water move differently without it? Container Geometry Try different shaped containers, like square bottles or tall cylinders. How does the shape of the “walls” affect the centripetal pull? How do real tornadoes form? A classic version of a natural vortex is a tornado. These form when warm, moist air meets cold, dry air, creating instability in the atmosphere. Find out more about the complex weather patterns behind them below: ✅ Reviewed: April 5, 2026 APA 7 Citation: Fizzics Education. (2020). Tornado in a jar. https://www.fizzicseducation.com.au/150-science-experiments/force-movement-experiments/tornado-in-a-jar/ Copy APA Citation Reviewer This resource was last reviewed for scientific accuracy on April 5, 2026. Ben Newsome CF is the recipient of the 2023 UTS Chancellor’s Award for Excellence and a Churchill Fellow. He is a global leader in science communication and the founder of Fizzics Education. Learn more! Teaching about air pressure? Check out the Flight or Weather show! Teaching about Newton’s laws? Check out the Forces, Friction & Movement workshop! Get in touch with FizzicsEd to find out how we can work with your class. Forces, Friction & Movement Years K to 6 Maximum 30 students School workshop 60 or 90 minutes Online Class Available Read More Enquire Now Flight or Weather Years 3 to 6 Maximum 30 students School science show (NSW & VIC) 60 minutes Online Class Available Read More Enquire Now Hands-on Kids Science Party >20 hands on science experiments Gigantic bubbles Slime making Professional science show From $395 inc. GST Read More Sale! Precision Gyroscope $24.99 Original price was: $24.99.$18.95Current price is: $18.95. excl. GST View Details Add to Cart Trustpilot
Fill the glass jar almost completely with water, leaving a small air space at the top of the jar. Now add a small amount of detergent.
Ensuring that the lid is tight, grip the top of the jar and give the jar a quick shake up and down to get some bubbles to form. Now, quickly swirl the jar around for a couple of seconds. The swirling motion is best done if the bottom of the jar swirls wider than the top of the jar.
School science visits since 2004! – Curriculum-linked & award-winning incursions. – Over 40 primary & high school programs to choose from. – Designed by experienced educators. – Over 2 million students reached. – Face to face incursions & online programs available. – Early learning centre visits too!
Get the Unit of Work on Pressure here! Want to dive into air pressure? It’s all about air pressure in many ways! From how storms form to how planes fly, this unit covers many concepts about air pressure. Includes cross-curricular teaching ideas, student quizzes, a sample marking rubric, scope & sequences & more
Teaching about air pressure? Check out the Flight or Weather show! Teaching about Newton’s laws? Check out the Forces, Friction & Movement workshop! Get in touch with FizzicsEd to find out how we can work with your class.
Forces, Friction & Movement Years K to 6 Maximum 30 students School workshop 60 or 90 minutes Online Class Available Read More Enquire Now
Flight or Weather Years 3 to 6 Maximum 30 students School science show (NSW & VIC) 60 minutes Online Class Available Read More Enquire Now
Hands-on Kids Science Party >20 hands on science experiments Gigantic bubbles Slime making Professional science show From $395 inc. GST Read More
>20 hands on science experiments Gigantic bubbles Slime making Professional science show From $395 inc. GST
Sale! Precision Gyroscope $24.99 Original price was: $24.99.$18.95Current price is: $18.95. excl. GST View Details Add to Cart Trustpilot
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