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How to Blow the Perfect Bubble

There's more to a common soap bubble than meets the eye. The size and longevity of a bubble are determined by myriad physical principles. Bubbles lose their surface tension when exposed to warm air and tend to pop after the water begins to evaporate. But they love humidity, because in that atmosphere, the water they contain is slower to evaporate. According to Bernoulli's principle, a bubble will remain afloat if air moves quickly over it, creating lift, as it does for aircraft. Like a thin skin, the bubble expands and stretches when it is filled with air.

Things You'll Need

2/3 cup dish soap
1 gallon soft or distilled water
2 1/2 tbsp. glycerin (for bigger, more colorful bubbles)
Bubble wand
Bubble pipe or straw
Open tin can
Plastic hoops for forming giant bubbles

Instructions

- 1
  Combine 2/3 cup dish soap, 1 gallon soft or distilled water and 2 1/2 tbsp. glycerin. Stir until well mixed. Then leave to stand, uncovered, until the next day if possible.
- 2
  Find an open space outdoors, ideally on a windless, cloudy, humid day when there is little dust in the air. Using your bubble wand, pipe, straw or other household objects (or even a coat hanger), dip into the open container of bubble solution. Blow steadily into the tube or wave the wand or other enclosed shape to the side to expand the bubble.
- 3
  Experiment with different bubble blowing tools. You can create a square bubble using a form made from pipe cleaners and dipping that into the solution. After you have one bubble formed, you can use a straw to blow other bubbles to adhere to the larger bubble and create bubble sculptures or chains.
- 4
  Wave your hands over the bubbles to keep them afloat. This will create an updraft. You can use a handheld fan to steer the bubble's course to the left or right.
- 5
  Watch the bubbles' display of color. The white light separates into a rainbow of colors or appears colorless as it reflects off the surface of the bubble membrane. As the bubble gets ready to pop, its colors will change, as the moisture drains from top to bottom.

Nature