Colorful Cosmic Lemonade

Using a pH indicator will visually inform you if a liquid is an acid or base by changing color. Our experiment uses Butterfly Pea Flower Tea, which contains Anthocyanin—a natural pH indicator. Refreshing and STEM-packed? Now, that's our kind of experiment.

Let's jump into the scientific method, you always start with a question. For Colorful Cosmic Lemonade, you might ask, what would the color be if no acid was added? What would happen if limes were used rather than lemons? Would a hot or cold day affect the outcome?

After you have your question, you can head to our Learn page to study up and form your hypothesis, which just means what do you think the answer to your question will be?

Now it's time to test your hypothesis!

Prep Time

20 minutes

Tools & Materials

• 1 Butterfly Pea Flower Tea Bag or 1 tsp. loose flowers
• 1 cup water
• Ice
• 4 Cups lemonade
• Measuring cups
• Small ramekin or glass
• 4 glasses
• Straw or spoon for stirring

Directions

Step 1
Start by making your Old-Fashioned Lemonade. Let it refrigerate for about 3 hours or until chilled if desired.

Step 2
Next, heat your water to near-boiling. Make sure an adult is present to handle the hot water!

Step 3
Add your teabag to a ramekin or glass and pour the near-boiling water over the teabag. Let it steep for 3-4 minutes or until the tea is a deep blue color. 

Step 4
Next, fill four glasses with ice and fill them with one cup of lemonade each.

Step 5
Add ¼ cup of your tea-soaked water to the lemonade. 

Step 6
Now it's time to add your tea and watch the color change!

Step 7
Serve with reusable or paper straw and enjoy. 

Draw Your Conclusion

Examine how it worked! What worked? What didn't work? What could you change next time to alter your results? Will you try again?

Share your results below!