Dropping Balls for Science

The Scientific Method:

Aim:

To measure the bounce height of table tennis balls, when dropped from different heights.

Hypothesis:

The higher up we drop the table tennis ball, the higher up it will bounce.

Equipment:

- Metre long ruler

- Table tennis / tennis ball

Method:

1. Set a metre ruler down, 0cm at the bottom, 100cm at the top.

2. Drop the table tennis balls from different heights in ascending order.

3. Monitor, measure, and write down the bounce height of each table tennis ball when dropped.

4. Test each height a minimum of three times to get an average.

Results:

Height	1	2	3	Average
2m	21cm	20cm	21cm	20.6cm
1.5m	18cm	17cm	19cm	18cm
1m	20cm	19cm	20cm	8.6cm
0.5m	8cm	9cm	9cm	8.6cm

Discussion:
I believe that when you drop a ball from a steep height, it gathers more momentum before it reaches the ground, therefore giving it more force to bounce higher.
There is a trend of increase when dropping balls from different heights in ascending order.
There also seems to be a large jump from 1m/0.5m to 1.5m/2m.

Conclusion:

Our hypothesis was accurate.
The higher the height you drop the table tennis ball from, the higher up it will bounce.