How to make a STORM GLASS to predict the weather!
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- Опубліковано 14 жов 2024
- Well, it snowed today! +1 for Storm Glass forecast accuracy.
The Storm Glass was first invented in the mid 1700's, and soon made it's way into ships and harbors around Europe to help give warning of approaching bad weather. It gained the most fame through Admiral FitzRoy who used a Storm Glass on the voyage in which he and Darwin traveled to the Galápagos Islands. As such, the instrument is sometimes called a 'FitzRoy Storm Glass'.
Due to the use of vodka rather than pure ethanol and water, the proportions I use to make the Storm Glass in my video breaks somewhat from the traditional ratios, but the recipe is balanced to achieve the same effect as the original. Fortunately, the chemical solution does not require extreme precision to work properly.
Composition:
Vodka, 100 Proof (50% Ethanol) - 300 mL
Camphor - 28g (1oz)
Potassium Nitrate - 10g
Ammonium Chloride - 10g
Some of these chemicals may be difficult to obtain in certain parts of the world, but if Camphor can be found it's possible that Potassium Nitrate or Ammonium Chloride could be substituted for other soluble salts, such as Sodium Chloride (I have not tested this).
To read a Storm Glass for weather prediction, here is a description from the book Pharmaceutical Formulas by Peter MacEwan, published in 1908:
------------------------------------------------
"The changes of the solution signify the following:
Clear liquid : Bright weather.
Crystals at bottom : Thick air, frost in winter.
Dim liquid with small stars : Thunderstorms.
Large flakes : Heavy air, overcast sky, snow in winter.
Threads in upper portion of liquid : Windy weather.
Small dots : Damp weather, fog.
Rising flakes which remain high : Wind in the upper air regions.
Small stars : In winter on bright, sunny days, snow in one or two days.
The higher the crystals rise in the glass tube in winter the colder it will be."
------------------------------------------------
The crystals within a Storm Glass will dissolve and solidify all on their own as the temperature changes day to day. If you would like to start fresh with completely clear liquid and watch the crystals form rapidly, the glass can be placed in a bowl of warm water for 10 minutes to dissolve old crystals completely. Remember to loosen the lid before doing so to prevent excess pressure from building inside.
For further reading see:
www.strangeappa...
en.wikipedia.or...
Thanks for watching! Please remember to leave me a comment and share this project with your friends! #NightHawkInLight
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"When coconut dry, it's sunny."
"When coconut wet, it's raining."
"When coconut swing, it's windy."
"When coconut is gone, it's storming."
when rock is dryots sunny
when rock is wet its raining
if rock is vibrating its an earthquake
if the is barely visible its foggy
if rock is swinging its windy
if rock is gone someones nicked it
Pusi thai
Pusi klin
Pusi frash
Haha. I've seen something similar on old farms. It's a big piece of rope. "If rope is dry it's sunnin'. If rope is wet, it's rainin'. If rope is stiff it's snowin', if rope is movin' the wind is blowin' if rope is gone... you're fucked" some say it a bit cleaner like "you better get gone too" but I prefer "you're fucked" lol😂
*"Don't drink this"*.
Ah, so that's what I did wrong...
***** RIP Press F to pay respects
Lord GabeN F
Lord GabeN f
lol
xD
I'd like to make one, but I'd have a fun time explaining to my parents why they'd need to buy me vodka 😂
show them this video!
or make some yourself....just buy some potatoes :-)
you oversimplify it a bit too much m80
haha..well just boil 20 kg's of potatoes for an hour, mash em up strain out the water then get 1kg of barley malt., 75-100kg's of good yeast. Mix the kg of malt with 2 liters of water let sit....heat up the mash in kettle at 150 degrees F add 1/3 the hydrated malt turn down temp to 140 add the rest of the malt....keep it ther for 2 hours. take it off let temp cool to about 75 degrees F put it in a fermenting container add the yeast and in four days...bam! vodka :-)
MaDeLapHnT is it really 75-100 kg of yeast?
Been watching your channel for an hour or so and I love it. Having a realisations constantly. Like the fact that camphor sublimates. In my country (Lithuania) we used to have a saying "evaporated like a camphor" to describe someone hastly leaving the place or something disappearing or being used up quickly. I never thought much about it. But now it makes sense! Thank you!
I love the smell of camphor in the morning!
I love the smell of napalm in the morning!
***** I love the smell of BACON in the morning!!!
Jim Bryan I love the smell of human souls and gasoline to burn a house in the morning.
BlueLapisGaming yeah i most say i like your style :)
BlueLapisGaming But everyone loves the smell of carbon monoxide in the morning
Things with chemistry seem so mysterious, until you get to them. You de-mystify them and make them understandable to the common person, always with the most efficient results possible, and the icing on the cake is the things you make are almost always practical! Thank you!
Lol I like how he has to say "don't drink this" for the special people out there ;)
it's the cocktail from hell, I'm sure it won't be too lethal.
spits it out on floor. now she tells me . now that the glass is half empty or is it half full ?
+tyler roberts
Alcohol causes:
Liver failure
Kidney disease
Cirrhosis of the liver.
Brain damage.
Kidney stones.
Dj Ruccy liver, kidney and brain damage, I'm pretty sure you need those organs to live.
+tyler “sarcastic” roberts It's half full, he might just have a chance.
Hi, I'm currently doing this project but I live in the Southern Hemisphere (Brazil) and its summer here, I'm trying to adjust the concentrations so it will precipitate on the lowest temperature of our hot weather, I gave it a couple of tries and it's pretty close to yours, thank you for the videos!
That was super cool, thanks for sharing this!
I made a storm glass using a large mason jar (such that the recipe was increased 2.5x). So far I am not sure it is working properly, but it sure is interesting anyway just to see crystals forming in solution. Great way to illustrate crystallization in a way that students can actually see happen in front of their eyes!
Wow, that's well cool, I love it!
Ahhhh dav i love your videos
ahhhh dav i dont love your video -_-
Pretty cool, huh?
Hey Grant!!!!!!!! You are very intelligent and and full of endurance, as i can see. Keep that gift, your reward comes in the distant future. I will now watch your other videos!!!!!! KEEP IT REAL FOREVER!!!!!!!!!
Great project, awesome how to!
Depending where you live
buying chemicals may make
you a suspect.
jon sanford
depending on where you live breathing makes you a suspect lol
TheLostBeliever Point made.
when you are 14 and want to make this.
"MOM CAN YOU BUY ME SOME VODKA?"
"WHY THE HELL WOULD I DO THAT YOUR 14"
"FOR SCIENCE"
SCIENCE, MOM
SCIENCE
You're
"Its For A School Project"
You should be 18 by now, excuses are no more
Awesome project! Thank you for sharing such knowledge when grade school wouldn't or was unaware...
Thanks for the explanation! I'll be doing this one for my science project!
Awesome experiment. Great work NHIL!
remember kids don't drink the chemicals.
Protip^
without adult supervision.
i would say not selling ur soul to demons is a more important lesson they need 2 know
Oh, man. I forgot how good your videos were. Good stuff!
As a side note. Sir Edmund Fitzroy tested this 'storm glass' while accompanying Charles Darwin enroute to the Galapagos Islands. Hence the name Fitzroy's Stormglass. The actual development/design was used many decades prior to Fitzroy.
I found this 'recipe' in a 1945 edition of 'the Book of Knowledge' which inspired me as a kid in the 50's to create one myself.
Very cool.
I first read how to make this Admiral Fitzroy Storm Glass from an old Encyclopedia, when I was a kid but couldn't get the pure alcohol here in the UK. Fantastic work NightHawklight
Neat project and easy to make. Nice job!
So it doesn't predict the weather it gives you insight into the changing of a climate over a period of time based upon the frequencies of the crystal formation.
WORKS PERFECT!!! Today I tested your formula in a miniature scale ( 50 ml total volume) and i used the camphor found in the chemical shop... It WORKS!!!!! I will be posting a DIY video credited to you soon! I used all pure chemicals from Chemical (Chemistry) shop
I got an empty bottle of Crystal Skull Vodka. Gonna make that into a really interesting storm glass. A human skull storm glass!
Wondering if this ever turned out??
Pics pls
My Mum's Christmas gift sorted.. Haha
Already?
interesting
hiiiiii
Really easy to do. I made it in 2 small jars and then poured it into a bigger jar after heating. Stilled worked with the transfer. Thank you!
Thank you NIL! I've always wondered what was inside of those! I think I'm going to try to make one!
Camphor can be found in many Indian grocery stores. For those of you who want to buy it locally.
Damn, I need to find me a nerd to fall in Love with. I just love how ppl can come up with these things
I still remember subbing you for your pyrotechnic devices when i was still building various bombs for fun :p
so i grew up with your vids which became a part of my life like various cartoons.
interesting what you've reached with your channel since back then
Dry ice bombs are the best
nah real explosives are way better :p
would it be possible to combine this and the golden rain trick in having sparkling gold crystals precipitate? Or would it be possible to somehow dye the solution so that the crystals come out a different color while retaining the clearness of the solution?
also, is reagent-grade ammonium chloride and potassium nitrate necessary? or will I get just as good results with lower grade chemicals?
The first intelligent comment I've seen.
Congratulations.
That is really smart :-D
I love how you simply say "don't drink it" 😂 But on a serious note I love your projects!!! You make science fun! And trust me i am a middle school boy who in no way likes learning. Keep it up and if you can do more pvc weaponry or any kind of pvc project!
Clear liquid : Bright weather.
Crystals at bottom : Thick air, frost in winter.
Dim liquid with small stars : Thunderstorms.
Large flakes : Heavy air, overcast sky, snow in winter.
Threads in upper portion of liquid : Windy weather.
Small dots : Damp weather, fog.
Rising flakes which remain high : Wind in the upper air regions.
Small stars : In winter on bright, sunny days, snow in one or two days.
The higher the crystals rise in the glass tube in winter the colder it will be."
A lot of online resources refer back to this video as being "the go to source" tutorial for making storm glass.
Some have said no potassium or ammonium is needed. Others say these ingredients serve to provide density to the liquid.
I do know crystals grow bigger, by two orders of magnitude, when the pH is between 4 - 5.2.
I don't know of any other roles that the potassium and ammonium do other than density and pH adjustment. The ethanol's only role seems to be as a solvent. Water's role seems to be the same .
Since water is more dense than alcohol, and pH seems to be a factor, could another set of less expensive ingredients be used?
Immediately, I am thinking 80 proof vodka (since US law makes 40% ABV vodka easier to sell than 50% ABV). This would increase the density some. Epsom salts has a molar mass near the potassium and ammonium compounds...so I was thinking about 25 grams of Epsom salts as a substitution. Then, for the pH, using tataric acid as since it is cheaply procured from a grocery store, could be added until a pH of 4 - 5 is achieved.
What do you think? What am I possibly overlooking or don't properly understand?
I certainly shouldn't be the go to source, I'm sure I found this recipe on a long forgotten website. I've not heard any mention of pH playing a role and haven't experimented with that myself. I believe other salts could be substituted, but you'll get different types of crystal shapes based on the molecular structure.
Thanks for this video! I appreciate learning something new.
Now THIS is really awesome good work and thanks and keep on making videos I can't wait to see more Tutorials of cool stuff.Good job.
How cool is that ! I'm making one .Can Vodka be replaced with some less expensive solution ? We don't drink strong alcohol.
Awesome i like all of your vids. I've watched all of them. Keep up the good work!
huh this is great! idk if i will try it but this seems like it could be useful! keep up the nice work :)
I'm glad that over time, you decided to ditch the Official Science Passive Voice, but it's still fun to hear "do not drink this" abruptly inserted into the video.
This is a very nice tool to predict weather! Such a brilliant idea! Oh! NightHawklnLight sir, you're my idol since I watched different videos of yours!!! Wish you post more interesting How to...
A list of where the ingredients for this project could be obtained in Canada would be enormously helpful.
(I think I can manage the vodka)
Excellent! I learned something new today. A good day indeed.
"This is the final Storm Glass. Don't drink this."
Do I have to worry about seasonal temperature changes if I make this in 65° weather in the fall, but summer temperatures can rise into the high 90's? Just worried about what it will be sitting on outside, and if the temperature changes in the north east (Pennsylvania) would require me to open it seasonally to readjust the internal pressure of the jar.
Awesome videos too, keep up the great work! You were one of my first subscriptions when I joined youtube a few years ago!
It should be fine in changing temperatures, at least in most jars.
OMG i loved it! I will do it, thanks for sharing!
Completely off topic, but my parents had that exact same glass pot as a kid. Completely forgot until this video. subbed!
What a beautiful item. Thank you for sharing this! Do you by any chance know who made the music?
Chinatown, by Train Cat
Thank you my friend! :) Looking forward to seeing more videos from you! :)
This looks like a nice decoration for your room or dorm. Even if you didn't use it for weather predictions.
Good video! You just left one thing out. How to read the different crystals forming so you can perdict the weather! I heard that the Englishman that invented this was pretty cool!
+nighthawkinlight Your videos are awesome! I think I remember watching some of your videos a while back in high school. Definitely the very kind of cool projects that I like doing at home. Keep on keepin' on and making these cool videos!
I have a storm glass that was given to me as a gift. I find it is highly accurate if kept in a window sill.
I love your channel so many cool projects
Thats pretty sick!
If I could put how much
I wottid I would put 1000000000
If I could put how much I would like to I would put 1000000000000000000000000💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯💯🚷💯💯💯💯💯💯
Good luck 👍🏽🍀
How old are you
you are the most clever man i have ever seen
Hi and thanks for so many wonderful science projects! We did this Storm Glass for our winter project, today. After cooled, the solution is a bit cloudy. The jar is outside now, and cloudy, am wondering if we zigged when we should have zagged? We followed the directions exactly. I am thinking that the ice on the top of the lid, may have somehow dripped into the solution during boiling? Any advice is wonderfully appreciated. Thanks!
+Carrie Becker Could be some impurities in one of your ingredients. The cloudiness may settle out, or it may not. The glass should function fine otherwise either way
Lol did you use vodka?
Actually, the rings can go on at any time, as long as they're only loosely put on, often referred to as "finger tight". It'd be kind of hard to waterbath can anything if the cans always exploded if you put the rings on them.
I now know what my science project will be....
totally doing this tomorrow. just have to buy the vodka and glass!
That was really cool! Thanks for the share =)
Is there a way to make it coloured? like coloured salt or something :O
also if I'm unable to purchase 100 proof vodka, how else can I prepare the the solvent ?
love your videos !! am excited to try and make this project !
Screw all this science, all I care about is the fact that I can now have Canada in a jar. Haha
Is this one of those "looks good doesn't work" projects?
What if there's no snow in my country?
So long as it gets warm in the day and colder at night the storm glass will still do cool stuff.
hear hear
Then skip the chemicals and just drink the Vodka
Thank you for showing this, you just gave me a great idea what to surprise my husband with this Christmas! He really loves weather-related things, especially clouds. I hope I can get the chemicals, though - they only sell these in 2kg pags minimum here.^^' (I could make a ton of these glasses, though...). Thank you again!
Storm glass works. I have a Fitzroy and it works perfectly
Man you really earned a subscribe *subscribes* here you go. :) happy christmas!
would love to give this a shot!
Hi this is brilliant. I only You tubed this because a friend has purchased one for her friend and asked me to make a wood base. I have finished the base and was going to us silicon gel to hold it in place. Will the gel prevent the crystals for working. I just want to make the glass firmly safe in case it's picked up from the base hence it could fall off.
Anything you use on the base shouldn't effect it.
james vincent pottassium nitrate is salt petre or stump remover and and ammomium chloride if im not mistaken is the white stuff inside instand ice packs
Just bought one, looks like I’ll have to set it outside to get the best out of it.
Thanks a lot!!! It's amazing work.
Another Very cool one NightHawk!!
The video is great, well made, and makes me want to make one of these storm glasses. It would have been helpful if you could have suggested where to get the various ingredients (except the vodka, of course). Are they available at Home Depot, pharmacies, etc.? Thanks.
Can I use 75% proof vodka?????
Hi! I really liked your project, I just have one question, is it compulsory to close the jar air tightly?
Awesome!
new sub this channel is just too dope
Love it, thank you for the vid!
I had a dream about this. I had a tank in the dream, and when I shook it, water would move. A flood started and the ocean waves crashed over California. Well, that's one way of solving the drought.
where does one get those two powdered chemicals?
+tackling turtles really?
for amonium chloride you can probably neutralize muriatic acid with amonia, both are used for cleaning, however the end product wont be pure, as it will contain FeCl impurities from the hydrochoric acid, so you may want to recrystalyce to remove a yellowish color.
And the nitrates, are used as fertilizer, however amazon is the easier way to go for me at least, unless you can get them in some gardening store
ficolas2 tank you
ficolas2 lol FeCl impurities
Very cool video, can you get all chemicals local , will it freeze if put in to cold of room, like to make one and put it in a cool glass container , thanks.
Wow your videos are awesome. I want to try them all out. Thank You and keep them coming ¡!¡!¡!¡!¡!¡!¡!¡!¡!¡!¡!¡
Adriana Olari Thanks! Glad you like them
Soo cool! Great vid!
I love your channel brother I'm gonna make this with my son He is going to flip his shit with excitement when he sees it in action lol
I'm definitely going to make one of these. This will be great if it works, since I don't watch tv for anything. Would be nice to know weather. ^^
I was wondering what would happen if I added food coloring after all the things melted would it affect the readings?
Sir. knight And the douche bag hasn’t answered in 3 years.
I did tried this with Phosphor.. seeing this storm glass even by night reacting! Bon't bother: Something went wrong! Reacting? Don't even ask!!!
Looking to make a much larger version of your storm glass inside of a glass form which is roughly a gallon to a gallon and a half of size, but would be inverted on to what starts out of the open end on the top of core purpose of mixing the chemicals into the container, my question is whether or not it is necessary to leave space in the top of the container in order to allow for the pressure change to give the desired effect or if the container can be 100% full of the solution as the open-end on mine would be facing downward and I want the entire container above it to be full
You need space. The contents change volume and will crack your glass.
Make sure that you put a warning label on it.
Hello, the following text can be read in the German Wikipedia. In terms of quantity, that sounds like an extreme deviation from your quantities. Can you tell me what the correct proportion would be for one liter? As I see in the video above, all ingredients are based on 300 ml?
Thank you
"The glass consists of a [...] camphor-alcohol solution. [...], mentions an aqueous solution of potassium nitrate and ammonium chloride mixed with a solution of camphor in ninety percent alcohol. The chemists [...] analyzed the contents [...] It contained per kg: 243 g water, 243 g ethanol, 363 g camphor, 50 g potassium nitrate and 100 g ammonium chloride."
I make a 1 L version in this video: ua-cam.com/video/Trz1diBkAR0/v-deo.htmlsi=Yuny_WX64Ft2SEtf
You can change the amount of ingredients if you'd like more or less crystals compared to the amount of liquid
is there a shelf life, expiration date, or contamination by condensation / evaporation after building this device or can it keep its accuracy and potency indefinitely?
So long as the lid is sealed it won't evaporate. It should last many years
Nice project !
Ideally you want a tall jar and a few such tools so that you can compare them in different locations.
That was beautiful
wow this is amazingly cool !! got me something to do now. i got a question though is there any dangers leaving this outside in 82.4F - 95F. it gets really warm in spring but cool enough in nights.??
No, should be fine in any weather.
awesome cheers
How long does the storm glass last for? Does it ever just naturally stop working, or can you keep using it for years?
+MaiCohWolf It lasts forever as long as the solvents aren't allowed to evaporate.
+NightHawkInLight hello can i ask a question? can we reuse it and how
Thanks for the video
I have problem......I drink all votka ...what now??
buy more -> drink more
next time wait until you got everything mixed together before you drink it...
Andrew James good one
Use the urine.
Rot in hell, thats what stupid
I love science!!!! That is chemistry.
I have the idea of grabbing a big fish tank putting a small village in it and then add the chemical solution, sit back and enjoy the snow... To bad I don't have the mony, maybe next year