Sky Rockets in Flight
Continuing to light up our entrance into 2009 let’s look at some of the most common firework effects. I think I could probably name many of those that hit our night skies now. Writing this blog entry has been so enlightening! “One of the most common firework effects is the Peony a spherical break of coloured stars.
Similarly, the Dahlia is essentially the same as a peony shell, but with fewer and larger stars. These stars travel a longer-than-usual distance from the shell break before burning out. For instance, if a 3″ peony shell is made with a star size designed for a 6″ shell, it’s then considered a dahlia. Some dahlia shells are cylindrical rather than spherical to allow for larger stars. Another quite common firework effect is the “Chrysanthemum”. The Chrysanthemum is a spherical break of coloured stars, similar to a peony but with stars that leave a visible trail of sparks.
If you’re new to my blog, just click on any blue word and you’ll see an example of the type of fireworks effect that I’m talking about. I’m thinking you’ll become fairly dab hand at identifying them after you’ve read and seen them.
In a similar vein the Diadem is a type of Peony or Chrysanthemum with a center cluster of non-moving stars, normally of a contrasting colour or effect. The name comes from the Latin word for “jewel”.
The Willow too is akin to a chrysanthemum, but with long-burning silver or gold stars that produce a soft, dome-shaped weeping willow-like effect. The Palm is a collection of palm-shell fireworks illuminating the beach of Tybee Island, Georgia. A shell containing a relatively few large comet stars arranged in such a way as to burst with large arms or tendrils, producing a palm tree-like effect.
Proper palm shells feature a thick rising tail that displays as the shell ascends, thereby simulating the tree trunk to further enhance the palm tree” effect. One might also see a burst of color inside the palm burst to simulate coconuts.
The Ring is a shell with stars specially arranged so as to create a ring. Variations include smiley faces, hearts, and clovers. A typical kamuro effect is a dense burst of glittering silver or gold stars which leave a heavy glitter trail.
A Crossette is a shell containing several large stars that travel a short distance before breaking apart into smaller stars with a loud crackling sound, creating a criss crossing grid-like effect. Once limited to silver or gold effects, coloured crossettes such as red, green, or white are now very common.
Another very common but much loved effect is the Spider, a shell containing a fast burning tailed or charcoal star that is burst very hard so that the stars travel in a straight and flat trajectory before burning out. This appears in the sky as a series of radial lines much like the legs of a spider.
A typical spider effect is the Horsetail named for the shape of its break, this shell features heavy long-burning tailed stars that only travel a short distance from the shell burst before free-falling to the ground. Also known as a waterfall shell. Sometimes there is a glittering through the “waterfall.”
Time Rain is an effect created by large, slow-burning stars within a shell that leave a trail of large glittering sparks behind and make a very loud sizzling noise. The “time” refers to the fact that these stars burn away gradually, as opposed to the standard brocade “rain” effect where a large amount of glitter material is released at once.
Multi-Break shells are a large shell containing several smaller shells of various sizes and types. The initial burst scatters the shells across the sky before they explode. Also called a bouquet shell. When a shell contains smaller shells of the same size and type, the effect is usually referred to as “Thousands”. Very large bouquet shells (up to 48 inches) are frequently used in Japan.
Salute pyrotechnics on the otherhand is a shell containing a large quantity of flash powder rather than stars, producing a quick flash followed by a very loud report. Titanium may be added to the flash powder mix to produce a cloud of bright sparks around the flash.
Salutes are commonly used in large quantities during finales to create intense noise and brightness. They are often cylindrical in shape to allow for a larger payload of flash powder, but ball shapes are common and cheaper as well. Salutes are also called Maroons.
A (aka pot-au-′feu) is a ground firework that expels stars and/or other garnitures into the sky. Shot from a mortar like a shell, a mine consists of a canister with the lift charge on the bottom with the effects placed on top. Mines can project small reports, serpents, small shells, as well as just stars. Although mines up to 12 inches in diameter appear on occasion, they are usually between 3 and 5 inches in diameter
A Roman candle is a long tube containing several large stars which fire intermittently at a regular interval. These are commonly arranged in fan shapes or crisscrossing shapes, at a closer proximity to the audience. Some larger Roman candles contain small shells (bombettes) rather than stars.
A cake is a cluster of small tubes linked by fuse, that fire small aerial effects at a rapid pace. Tube diameters can range in size from ¼ inch to 4 inches, and can sometimes have over 1,000 shots. These are often used in large quantities as part of a show’s finale.
The variety of effects within individual cakes is often such that they defy descriptive titles and are instead given cryptic names such as “Bermuda Triangle”, “Pyro Glyphics”, “Waco Wakeup”, and “Poisonous Spider”, to name a few. Others are simply quantities of 2.5″-4″ shells fused together in single-shot tubes.”
That’s my sky rockets in flight and I hope you’ve enjoyed seeing the different fireworks effects and the next time you see a firework display you’ll remember the different names for each effect. I’m feeling pretty proud of myself because I really do think I could identify a few of them now. Enjoy!
