What is the best temperature for a soccer ball?

Does temperature affect the way a ball bounces? This simple science activity uses a soccer ball and a refrigerator to find out.

Does temperature affect the way a ball bounces? Scientific research

You will need to

Soccer

Fridge

Outdoor space

Instructions

Place a soccer ball in the refrigerator for about 2 hours. Test to see if it bounces. Allow the ball to warm up and test again.

What is happening?

Footballs, like most bouncing balls, are filled with air. The gas molecules inside the ball move to fill all the available space and can move away from or towards each other. When a ball hits the ground, the ground exerts a force on the ball, pushing it upwards and the bottom of the ball inwards; this compresses the air inside the ball. When the ball leaves the ground, it returns to its original shape and the air molecules separate again. It is this compression and immediate return to the original shape that makes a ball bounce.

This video shows how a ball compresses when it hits the ground.

A soft ball that doesn't have enough air inside it has little air pressure inside it and won't bounce very high. A ball filled with air has a lot of air pressure inside it and will bounce well.

Now we come to the key part.

Higher temperatures cause higher atmospheric pressure.Because when the air is hot, the gas molecules have more energy and move further apart, which increases the pressure inside the ball.

At a lower temperature, the gas molecules move closer together and move more slowly. The air pressure inside the ball is lower, so it won't bounce as well.

More scientific experiments with balls

Discover Why do balls bounce? with a simple scientific activity.

Learn about gravity with a gravity race with ball drop.

Try one of my STEM challenges in football.

Last updated on August 6, 2024 by Emma Vanstone