International Space Station Crystals

Our current study unit has been on space and space exploration. As part of that study, we picked up The International Space Station by Franklin M Branley from the library. On the International Space Station there are many experiments being conducted to evaluate the affects of space versus what we see as "normal results" from the same experiments on Earth. One such experiment that they are conducting is the growth of crystals. The last page of the book provided this expirement as a suggestion. I thought it was very interesting that we weren't the only ones growing crystals this month!

The tools / ingredients necessary:

• Glass jar (wide mouth if possible)
• Baking Soda
• Pipe Cleaners
• A pencil
• Paper Clip
• Hot water

Bend pipe cleaners into desired shape. We chose a star, a spiral and a rocket. Take the pipe cleaner and tie to a piece of string, which will then be wrapped around the pencil. The length of the string should allow the pencil to sit horizontally across the top of the jar with out touching the bottom. A paper clip will likely need to be used as a weight on the pipecleaner until the cyrstals start to develop, and then can be removed.


Fill the jars with hot (not quite boiling) water. Add baking soda, one spoonful at a time and then stir until the baking soda disolves. Continue to add additional spoonfuls until the baking soda no longer disolves. But also, don't put in more than one spoonful at a time - it will bubble over. Sink the pipecleaner into the water and position the pencil to keep the shape hanging in the water.


Check the progress of the crystals every few hours to see how much they are growing.



Once you are content with the thickness of your crystals, remove from the water and let dry. We kept ours in the water for about 55 hours.


I wish that the book had told us more about this experiment, like the differences that are being seen on the crystals made in space, or what the scientists are using this information for.