Static Electricity Page created by Bill Beaty 3) 'Learn More About It' pages are more difficult and cover additional information in more depth 4) Projects are included for each topic. 2) 'I Can Read' pages are written in simple, clear language for young readers. There are four sections to Science Made Simple's Static Electricity Page: "1) The main section gives a clear, detailed answer to the question. Science Made Simple: What is static electricity? Author: Science Reference Section, Library of Congress Related Websites Wilson’s Creek National Battlefield, 2010. Navy issue powder flask, made out of brass to prevent any accidental ignition of powder due to sparks or static electricity. As the two come in contact, the balloon will stick because of the rule that opposites attract (positive to negative).įor more static electricity information and experiments, see the list of Web Resources and Further Reading sections. The wall is now more positively charged than the balloon. When you rub a balloon against your clothes and it sticks to the wall, you are adding a surplus of electrons (negative charges) to the surface of the balloon. Your hairs are simply trying to get as far away from each other as possible! A Marine uses a static discharge wand to discharge excess static electricity before attaching an M777 howitzer to a CH-53E Super Stallion helicopter during integrated slingload training at Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton, April 12, 2017. Because they have the same charge, your hair will stand on end. Don’t worry, it is only the surplus electrons being released from you to your unsuspecting pet.Īnd what about that “hair raising” experience? As you remove your hat, electrons are transferred from hat to hair, creating that interesting hairdo! Remember, objects with the same charge repel each other. As you reach and touch your furry friend, you get a shock. The electrons cling to your body until they can be released. For example, if you rub your shoe on the carpet, your body collects extra electrons. The rubbing of certain materials against one another can transfer negative charges, or electrons. Frances Benjamin Johnston, photographer, c.1899. Prints & Photographs Division, Library of Congress Group of young women studying static electricity in normal school, Washington, D.C. One way to discharge them is through a circuit. These charges can build up on the surface of an object until they find a way to be released or discharged. Static electricity is the result of an imbalance between negative and positive charges in an object. Most of the time positive and negative charges are balanced in an object, which makes that object neutral. Like charges repel each other (positive to positive or negative to negative). Opposite charges attract each other (negative to positive). Therefore, all things are made up of charges. The protons are positively charged, the electrons are negatively charged, and the neutrons are neutral. Inside an atom are protons, electrons and neutrons. Prints and Photographs Catalog, Library of Congress.Īll physical objects are made up of atoms. Young man seated next to a Holtz electrostatic influence machine, Dickinson College, 1889. Why do these things happen? Is it magic? No, it’s not magic it’s static electricity!īefore understanding static electricity, we first need to understand the basics of atoms and magnetism. Have you ever walked across the room to pet your dog, but got a shock instead? Perhaps you took your hat off on a dry winter’s day and had a “hair raising” experience! Or, maybe you have made a balloon stick on the wall after rubbing it against your clothes? Two girls are “electrified” during an experiment at the Liberty Science Center “Camp-in”, February 5, 2002. An imbalance between negative and positive charges in objects.
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