Choregraphed fireworks displays will light up skies tomorrow night across the country, generating numerous "ooohs" and "ahhhs." But do you know the science behind the sound? Paul Worsey does.
According to Worsey, whose pyrotechnic students often perform fireworks shows at local events, computer programs now allow shows to be run entirely from music. The process of setting a show to music begins by measuring the amount of time a particular type of firework takes to explode after leaving the ground and recording this number in a database. Next, the music to be used in a show is translated to time code, so that it can be read by the computer. From there, show designers must simply determine when they want specific types of fireworks to detonate during the show, and using the database, the computer will calculate how far in advance it needs to launch a firework so that it will explode at just the right time. Once the program is set, the fireworks are grouped together and numbered, connected with Ethernet cables, and then commanded by the computer when to fire, based on the time code.“It’s becoming very, very technical,” said Worsey. “And it’s becoming a lot safer, since you don’t have people lighting the fireworks and blowing themselves head over heels.”
A summer rerun courtesy of JOM.
