Water Bottle Flippin' Fun

This classic viral video sparked a nationwide disturbance of young kids annoyingly flipping water bottles to no end. At the same time, we've all tried it. But those kids are still annoying.

Anyways, ever wonder how the water bottle is actually able to land perfectly on its bottom after being spun? Me neither! Until the other day when I was brainstorming ideas for blog posts. So I'll tell ya. 

First of all, you need the ideal amount of water inside your bottle. The most preferred type is a 16.9 oz classic. Fill that bad boy to as close as 1/3 of the bottle as your eyes can measure.

Holding the bottle by the top, the water and center of gravity rest in the base. On a perfect throw, the ideal amount angular momentum causes the bottle to rotate. While it is rotating, the water doesn't stay at the base. It sloshes around, shifting the center of mass towards the center. The light bottle allows for the angular momentum to transfer with the heavier water, resulting in a decline in spin speed. At this point the bottle is basically upright and gravity does its thang the rest of the way to the table.

I know you were dying to hear about the physics of the most aggravating fad of 2016. You're welcome. Thanks for tuning in folks!