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Ingenium Canada Science and Technology Museum

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Sailboat Racing

Hours and Location

Open 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., Tuesday to Sunday
Address
1867 St Laurent Blvd, Ottawa, ON
Admission
Browse all Visitor Information for Canada Science and Technology Museum
Browse All Visitor Information

Sailboat Racing

Styrofoam sailboat
Download PDF version

Sail out on the open seas – or perhaps in your backyard! For this experiment, you will design and race different boats to determine the ultimate sailboat design.

What you need

  • Styrofoam
  • Construction paper
  • BBQ skewers
  • Tape
  • Scissors
  • Kiddy pool, large bin, or bathtub
  • A hose (if you’re outside)
  • Pencil and paper
  • Stopwatch

Safety first!

Adult supervision may be needed when handling scissors or BBQ skewers. Young children should not be left unattended near pools of water.

Make it

  1. Fill your bathtub, pool, or bin up with water close to the rim. We recommend that you do this outside!
  2. Come up with three different boat designs, using the Styrofoam as the hull (the base), and the construction paper and dowels for the sails. Draw them out for reference. Experiment with the shape and sizes of both the hull and the sail.
  3. Cut out the hull shapes for your first boat out of Styrofoam. Get adult help if needed!
  4. Cut out the shape of your sail from the construction paper.
  5. Cut any dowels you need to size.
  6. Build your boat! Use the pointed end of the dowel to stick into the Styrofoam as your main mast.
  7. Repeat steps 2-6 for the other two designs.
  8. Make a prediction: which boat do you think will be fastest? Which will be slowest?

Test it

Put your first boat to the test! Line it up at the edge of your pool or bin. Start your stopwatch, and then continuously blow on it as hard as you can. How long did it take to cross the whole way? Repeat this with your two other boats. Which one was the fastest? What was better about its design? Were your predictions right?

Explain it

Although wind is invisible, it is an incredibly powerful force! If designed well, sailboats can be incredibly fast and nimble. A couple key factors come into play with the design of a faster boat. The hull of the boat needs to be thinner (and hopefully, it should be pointed at the front) to avoid the resistance of the water. As well, the sail needs to have a large enough surface area to catch as much wind as possible. The sails must also be small enough and shaped a certain way so that they can change directions quickly.

Observe it

Just like the sailboat transforms wind energy into motion or mechanical work, wind turbines transform wind energy into electricity. Wind is a completely renewable resource, which means unlike fossil fuels, it is inexhaustible. Both of these machines take advantage of this resource to help people accomplish what they need in a completely sustainable manner. However, wind turbines only provide a small percentage of the electricity produced in the world. Why do you think that is? Think about problems that your sailboat might have out in the open seas – they are more similar to the wind turbine problems than you might think!

Go further

One issue that sailors face is the incredible power of winds. If sailors are caught in a storm, the sails might tip the boat over or damage it. Try using cut dowels as reinforcements to your boat’s mast and sail. Get a friend to help you blow on the sail as hard as you can – does it break or can it withstand the wind?

Sailboat materials including scissors, pen, construction paper and tape
boat and sail design drawn on a piece of construction paper
Styrofoam boat, a pink triangle for the sail and a bbq skewer

Program Details

SCITECH
Canada Science and Technology Museum
Duration
20 minutes
Difficulty Level:
Medium
Program Location
Online
  • View all programs at the Canada Science and Technology Museum
  • View other programs related to Meteorology, Marine Transportation

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About Canada Science and Technology Museum

Canada Science and Technology Museum
The Canada Science and Technology Museum tells Canada's innovation story in an immersive, educational, and fun way.
Read more about the museum

Contact Us

Canada Science and Technology Museum
1867 St Laurent Blvd
Ottawa ON K1G 5A3
Canada

613-991-3044
1-866-442-4416
contact@IngeniumCanada.org
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  • Plan Your Visit
    • Health and Safety
    • Hours
    • Admission
    • Location and Directions
    • Accessibility
    • Browse All Visitor Information
    • Buy Tickets
    • Online Resources for Science at Home
    • About the Museum
  • What's On at the Museum
    • Events
    • Exhibitions
    • Spaces and Studios
  • Bookings and Rentals
    • School Programs
    • Birthday Parties
    • Summer Camps
    • Venue Rentals
    • Travelling Exhibitions
    • Virtual Field Trips
    • Group Visits
  • Educational Programs
    • School Programs
    • Virtual Field Trips
    • Program Location
      • At the Museum
      • At Your School
      • Online
      • Browse all Educational Programs
    • Popular Links
      • 3D Educational Resources
      • Digital Learning Kits
      • Games and Apps
      • Online Resources for Science at Home
      • Tell Me About
      • Try This Out
  • Collection and Research
    • Research Institute
    • Research Projects
    • Collection Resources
      • Ingenium Collection
      • Collection Highlights
      • Conservation and Collection Services
    • Library and Archives
      • Library and Archives Services
      • Library Catalogue
      • Digital Archives
    • Open Access
      • Ingenium APIs
      • Open Data
      • Open Documents
  • Projects and Initiatives
    • Ingenium Channel
    • Curiosity on Stage
    • Women in STEM
    • Innovation Storybook
    • Species at Risk in Canada
    • Climate Science