hen bring the other balloon close to that balloon. What happens and why?
You didn't specify the initial state of the balloons, so I'll assume you're referring to a typical demonstration of static electricity. Let's say you have two balloons that have been rubbed with a cloth to give them a static charge.
When you bring one statically charged balloon close to another statically charged balloon, several things might happen based on the type of charge each balloon has:
1. Same Charge (Both Balloons Charged Similarly):
If both balloons have been charged similarly (both with a negative or positive charge by rubbing them with a cloth), they will repel each other. This happens because like charges (both positive or both negative) repel, due to the electrostatic force which acts between charged objects.
2. Opposite Charge (One Balloon Positive, the Other Negative):
If one balloon is positively charged and the other is negatively charged (which is less common because typically rubbing with the same material tends to induce the same type of charge on both balloons), they would attract each other. This attraction is due to the fact that opposite charges attract.
3. Uncharged and Charged Balloon:
If you bring a charged balloon near an uncharged one, you could still observe attraction due to induced polarization. The electrons in the neutral balloon would be repelled or attracted by the charged balloon, causing one side of the neutral balloon to become more charged (negative or positive) and the other side to have an opposite charge, leading to an attraction between the two balloons.
The force involved in all of these interactions is the electrostatic force, which is one of the four fundamental forces of nature. The degree of repulsion or attraction will depend on the distance between the balloons (the force gets weaker with distance according to Coulomb's law) and the amount of charge on each balloon.