National Teacher Enhancement Project

Middle School Home Energy Audit

COLOR ABSORPTION
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COLOR ABSORPTION:

Different colors absorb different energy levels of the energy spectrum

To identify the best colors to use for energy absorption you will need the following:

- 1- Celsius Thermometer

- Clock or Watch

- Sheets of different colored construction paper

- Graph paper

- Pencil/pen

 

Activity:

- Place the thermometer on a solid surface in sunlight

- Cover the base of the thermometer with a piece of colored construction paper

- Graph the thermometer reading every minute for 20 minutes.

- Repeat the activity (collect data for at least 3 different colors)

 

Created for the NTEP II Fermilab LInC program sponsored by Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory Education Office and Friends of Fermilab, and funded by United States Department of Energy, Illinois State Board of Education, North Central Regional Technology in Education Consortium which is operated by North Central Regional Educational Laboratory (NCREL), and the National Science Foundation.

 

Authors: Sue Emmons, Powell Middle School, Littleton, CO; Kevin Lindauer, John F. Kennedy High School, Denver, CO; Linda Lung, National Renewable Energy Laboratory, Golden, CO; John Sepich, Scott Carpenter Middle School, Westminster, CO; ; Janet Stellema, Monarch K-8, Louisville, CO.
Created: September 9, 1998 - Updated: October 2, 2001.
URL: /ntep/f98/projects/nrel_energy_2/colorabsorption.html