Colors of the Arctic

Question:  Will water temperatures be different if bags of water are covered in different colors of construction paper?

Hypothesis:

Zane predicts that red paper will cause the water to have the highest temperature.  He predicts that black will make the water the lowest temperature.

Zoe predicts that the white paper will cause the water to have the highest temperature.  Zoe predicts that black will make the water the lowest temperature.

Procedure:

1. Fill four bags with two cups of water each.

2. Cover each bag of water in a different color of paper (black, green, red, and white)

3. Wait 2 hours and check the temperature of each bag of water.

4. Write down the temperatures.

 Results:

We measured the temperature of the bags of water.  The water in the bag covered in white paper was 105 degrees Fahrenheit.  The water in the green bag and the black bag was 112 degrees Fahrenheit.  The water in the red bag was 110 degrees Fahrenheit.

Conclusion:
Our predictions were not supported by the results of this experiment.  The water in the white bag had the lowest temperature after sitting in the sun for 2 hours.  The water in the green bag and the black bag had the highest temperature after sitting in the sun for 2 hours.

Discussion:
The white paper may have reflected some of the sunlight instead of absorbing all the heat, the way the black and green and red papers did. Is the Arctic region cold because the white ice reflects sunlight and heat instead of absorbing it?