Here's the Truth About That Insane Broom Challenge You Keep Hearing About

Kelly O'Sullivan
·2 min read

From House Beautiful

  • The #BroomChallenge is taking over social media.

  • It turns out that the "science" behind the viral trend is just a myth.

Move over, Dolly Parton—there's a new craze sweeping the internet.

The "Broom Challenge" took over Twitter on Monday following claims that on certain days of the year, a broom can stand upright by itself. According to the viral tweet that started this trend, "NASA said [February 10] was the only day" this could happen because of the earth's gravitational pull.

Naturally, everyone wanted to see if it really worked—and they were shocked by the results.

Thousands of people (including celebrities) took to social media to share photos and videos of brooms standing up on their own, seemingly validating the claim that this phenomenon was made possible by a mysterious trick of gravity.

So...is the Broom Challenge real?

Despite the "proof" circulating online, the science behind the Broom Challenge is just a myth. There is no evidence that NASA has ever made such an announcement about the effects of gravity on household cleaning tools and, in fact, anyone can make a broom stand upright any day of the year. It has nothing to do with a gravitational pull or the alignments of the planets, but it has everything to do with balance.

This CNN video from 2012 explains what's really happening with everyone's brooms—and proves that this urban legend has been circulating for nearly a decade.

Apparently, the center of gravity is low on a broomstick and it rests directly over the bristles, allowing the entire broom to stand upright when positioned like a tripod.

We're sad to say that the #BroomChallenge is based on totally faulty science—but it sure makes a fun party trick!

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