No Fourth of July celebration would be complete without fireworks – but do you know what you’re looking at? Here’s a quick cheat sheet of some popular ones.
Brocade: (at left) A spider like effect in the sky, much like fine lace. The brocade effect is generally a silver tail effect, and is brighter than the willow or tiger tail effect. Most brocade effects use glitter to produce the long brocade tails.
Chrysanthemum: (at right) A flower-like aerial pattern, usually resulting from a mortar.
Comet: (at left) A type of star that leaves a long trail of sparks as it flies through the air.
Waterfall (at right):
Glowing embers that fall slowly in the air, creating a willow or waterfall effect.
Flying Fish: (at left)
An aerial effect that looks like a swarm of objects squirming though the air. This effect usually lasts only a few seconds. The “fish” are actually a type of fuse that propels itself through the air, creating a swimming effect.
Strobe: (at right). 
A strobe is a blinking effect. When used in a shell with hundreds of strobe stars, the strobe effect looks like shimmering water in the sky. Strobes can be a variety of colors, including white, green, blue, and orange.
COMMENTS
8 responses to “Name That Firework!”
How timely for me. At our local display the other night, I was just wishing I had the terms to describe each burst I was seeing!
Chrysanthemum and Flying Fish are just black boxes….
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When I was 19 years old traveling through Europe, I saw a fireworks display in Monte Carlo. I will never forget the way the French view it, after every burst they would all call out the color it was: ohhh Rouge! Ohhh Bleu! etc.
Great info! Thank you for putting names to my favorite types of displays. After all of these years I know what I have been mesmerized by.
We never have to stop learning!! I love this info! Thanks.
That was so nice, naming the fireworks interesting I enjoyed seeing it on on your text( NAME THAT FIREWORK)
THANK YOU FOR SHARING!!
After years of loving to watch fireworks displays I finally can give names to what i’ve been seeing! Thanks for this article.
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