Doppler 9&10 STEM: Potato Power

Teachers & Parents:

Does your kid have a science question?

Have them send us a video with a weather question to weather@9and10news.com!

Have you lost power recently? Well, this experiment will not help you actually get your power back, but it may provide you with a little light.

We are going to use potatoes to light up a light bulb! The potato contains electrolytes, which are minerals that contain or carry an electric charge. When you place metal or metals into the potato it creates an electrical circuit allowing the electric field to flow outside of the potato. It is best to use copper wire. Copper has a low resistance to electricity, which means it allows electricity to flow freely throughout the wire. If you attach the wire to a light bulb, it will have enough of an electric field to turn on a light bulb.

So here is what you will need for today’s experiment:

• Potatoes
• Copper Wire
• Nail
• Rubber Coated Wire with Alligator Clips
• 0.5 LED Night Light Bulb

Procedure:

1. Grab the Copper Wire and Curl it, it should look like a spring
2. Place the copper wire on the left side of your potato
3. Place the nail on the right side of the potato
4. Repeat 1-3 with a second potato
5. Connect the wire with alligator clips to the nail in your potato 1
6. Connect the other end of the alligator clips to your copper wire on potato 2
7. With the open ends of your alligator clips, clip those to the light bulb
8. You can use several potatoes or cut them up to increase the amount of voltage in the electric field

If your kiddos try this experiment, send us photos of you and your experiment and you might get to see it during weather on The Four on Tuesdays!

Make sure you tune in every Tuesday for a New 9&10 STEM. Send us an email at  or find us on Facebook and at Doppler 9&10 Weather Team if you have a weather question or want something in science explained! It does not have to be weather-related! Anything Science or math-based we’ve got you! You can always get the latest forecast on 9and10news.com/weather as well as interact with us on social media!

Facebook — , and 

Twitter — , and 

Instagram —  , and