4th of July fireworks: the science of salt, sulfur, and other stuff

July 3, 3:47 PMAtlanta Teachable Moments ExaminerCarol Aitken

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Twice a year, children and adults who normally get their entertainment from TV and ipod, turn their eyes skyward to experience amazing displays of color and sound: FIREWORKS!  It's magical. It's beautiful. It's science.

Its History
History of fireworks from Socyberty.com:

• The first real use of gunpowder was when Chinese monk, Li Tian, created a mixture of charcoal, sulfur, and saltpeter that exploded when it was enclosed in a bamboo shoot.
• The exact time and person that introduced the rest of the world to fireworks is debatable. Some credit Marco Polo with bringing fireworks home to Europe in the 13th century. Others claim that it was in the 14th century, when crusaders saw the spectacular light and sound shows and brought them home. 
• History texts state that King Henry VII had a firework show at his marriage ceremony in 1496. Medieval time rulers would also use fireworks to prove to their subjects that the court had magic powers.
• Fireworks made it the Americas in the 17th century when the English settled and brought fireworks with them. 
• It wasn't until the 1830s that pyrotechnicians learned how to add color to fireworks by regulating the electromagnetic radiation. Colors are created when metal salts are added to the mixture. The color is produced when heat is narrowed to a short segment of spectrum. Each metal salt produces light in a specific wavelength. Sodium salts make yellow. Copper salts make blue. Strontium nitrate makes red. Barium nitrate makes green. Carbon makes orange.

According to the Palm Beach County Library, "Captain John Smith is credited for bringing fireworks to America in 1608 in order to impress the native peoples in the early Jamestown colony."

"During the Revolution, John Adams wrote to his wife that the signing of the Declaration of the Independence would be marked with 'bonfires and illuminations from this time forevermore.' When Adams referred to illuminations, he was most likely thinking of the practice of lit candles in buildings and public squares before streetlights were common. However, fireworks displays soon became synonymous with the 4th of July. Boston first held a fireworks display on July 4th in 1805."

More July 4th Celebrating in Atlanta Area
Atlanta's Centennial Park
Duluth
North Georgia   Friday
North Georgia  Saturday

Read More About Fireworks!

Fireworks : the Science, the Art, and the Magic by Susan Kuklin

Fourth of July Fireworks by Patrick Merrick

From Rock to Fireworks: a Photo Essay by Gary W.Davis

The Fabulous Firework Family by James Flora

The Firework-Maker's Daughter by Philip Pullman

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