Why Do My Ears Pop?

When you go up a hill or down into a valley, your ears pop because air is moving inside them like bubbles in a soda bottle.

Imagine your ear is like a bottle filled with soda, when you open the lid, fizz goes out. Your ear has something similar called the eardrum, which moves when air pressure changes around it.

When you go up, like in a car going up a hill or on an airplane taking off, the air outside your ears gets thinner, kind of like climbing into a lighter blanket. Your ears feel like they're being squeezed from the inside, and then pop!, it's like opening a soda bottle lid to let some fizz escape.

When you go down, like going into a cave or into a deep swimming pool, the air outside gets thicker, kind of like diving under a heavy blanket. Your ears feel like they're being pushed from the outside, and then pop!, it's like pressing on a soda bottle to make more fizz come out.

Your ears pop to balance the pressure inside and outside your head, just like a bottle lets air in or out when you open it!