Fireworks are devices filled with explosive chemicals used for celebratory purposes. They are classified as display—used by licensed professionals—or consumer—used by the general public—but both get their propulsion and explosion from gunpowder.
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Disney’s “Feeling Fireworks” uses water jets and a latex screen to replicate fireworks for blind individuals. Such technology may also provide inclusive experiences for the deaf community, though as of 2024, there are no plans to implement them in Disney parks.
A warehouse explosion in 2008 forced all pyrotechnic shipments to travel through the Shanghai port under a special permit Ding Yan Zhong was given. Since then, he has established a near-monopoly over the global fireworks distribution chain, with manufacturing hubs in China and a logistics company in California.
When heated, electrons absorb energy and move to excited states within an atom. They promptly drop back down and release light energy corresponding to the size of the drop, which is unique to each element.
By using a reduced amount of flash powder—the ingredient responsible for the loud explosions that fireworks make—"silent" fireworks produce displays between 70 and 90 decibels, rather than the approximately 175 decibels heard in professional displays.
The American Pyrotechnics Association estimates that over 10,000 injuries result each year from fireworks, close to three-quarters of which occur around the Fourth of July. This video shows just one rather explosive miscue.
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