1 hour or more

Not recommended for carpeted floors.

Here’s a fun physics experiment for those who aren’t afraid of making a mess! 

Creativity
Learning and Leadership
A carton of 10 eggs. The egg in the bottom right corner is cracked open, revealing the yolk.

OVERVIEW

If you dropped a raw egg from a great height onto a hard floor, you wouldn’t be surprised when it broke upon landing. In this experiment, your goal is to build a structure that will protect the egg from breaking on impact. 

A collage of four egg drop devices.

Materials

The fun of this experiment is to come up with your own design to protect the egg. There are many different items you could use to get this done, but you can try starting with the following:

  • Raw egg(s)
  • Popsicle sticks
  • Tarp or newspaper (floor covering)
  • String
  • Balloons
  • Styrofoam cups
  • Straws
  • Plastic bags
  • Rubber bands
  • Tape

Instructions

Note: This activity can be done alone as a challenge to build the best egg protector, or as a timed competition in a group!

  1. Gather your materials and find a spot where you are able to safely drop the egg (a height of 6 – 8 feet should do the trick)
  2. Lay down a tarp or newspaper at the ‘drop site’, just in case your creation isn’t successful
  3. Set a timer for 40 minutes and begin creating a device that will protect the egg from breaking when dropped
  4. Try to spend the first 10 minutes planning and brainstorming. Have a plan in mind before you begin building!
  5. When your device is complete and your egg is thoroughly protected, perform a drop

How it Works

This is an experiment that demonstrates the Conservation of Energy, that is how in a system, energy cannot be created or destroyed, only converted. When you hold your egg above the drop site, it is full of potential energy. When the egg is dropped and begins to move, potential energy is transferred into kinetic energy. And when the egg lands, that energy acts on the floor and egg, breaking the shell.

To be successful in your egg drop, think about how you can reduce the amount of energy acting on the egg! Consider:

  1. Slow down the egg – creating a device that makes the egg fall slower reduces the amount of kinetic energy the egg builds
  2. Soften the landing – if you can create cushions or layers between the egg and the ground, this slows down the conversion of energy and can help protect the shell
  3. Disburse the energy – you can try creating a device with elastic or springs. These work like shock absorbers by absorbing some of the energy that would be transferred to the egg on impact.