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Exclusive Explosion: blowing up a paddling pool with hydrogen

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Greg Foot Greg Foot | 13:20 UK time, Thursday, 4 November 2010

Hey guys, I'm new to ³ÉÈË¿ìÊÖ Three so I thought I'd introduce myself. I'm Greg and for the past five months I've been off doing lots of cool stuff for a new ³ÉÈË¿ìÊÖ Three show called Secrets of the Universe. It's a science documentary, but it's kinda different to the typical science shows. First up they didn't send me anywhere glamorous like the jungle or the arctic - which was a bit gutting - but I did get to surf a tidal wave (over near Gloucester!) and play the guitar at 60mph strapped to a jeep. Hell yeah!

I even got Big Ben to chime thirteen times:

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The show sets out to answer one of those epic head-screw questions - where did we come from? And when I was told we'd be doing loads of stunts to find out what's going on I jumped at the chance. Literally. One of the demos involves my mates shooting me with some pretty fly paintball guns as I dropped out of a tree. Yep, it bloody hurt. Major purple bruises for weeks. Good laugh though, and it was all to check out the gravity that stops us floating off into space.

There's loads of other stuff like me microwaving ants, building a death ray and exploding a massive cream cake (that was an awesome day!) too so the show is pretty rammed. One thing that we couldn't squeeze in was some fun I had up on my roof terrace, so I thought I'd give you the chance to watch the extra scene here. My housemates don't know about this though, which is probably a good plan, as they're still wondering what happened to their beloved plants...

See what happened in this exclusive clip of a paddling pool explosion!

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This clip was a supersized version of a little demo I did in the show where I used a battery to rip water molecules apart and release the hydrogen inside. The test for hydrogen is to light it. If you get a pop, voila it's hydrogen. So I thought why don't I do a big one up on my roof? We got some car batteries and a paddling pool and set it going. Got a pretty sweet amount of hydrogen but when I lit it there was only a tiny flame and not the explosion I was looking for. So we called in a canister of hydrogen, just to get that proper bang!

The cool thing with this is that all the stuff exploding here - hydrogen - was made in the Big Bang, so it's over 13 billion years old. Which is kinda crazy cos when you drink a glass of water you're drinking down something from the dawn of time. Which I think is pretty neat.

It's been a blast making the show and fingers crossed I'll get to do another! I'd love to hear what you guys think of the show.

Greg Foot presents Secrets of The Universe tonight at 8pm.

Comments

  • Comment number 1.

    Big Ben chiming 13.
    I remeber this from an episode of Captain Scarlet back in 1968. As a Londoner I'd always wondered if it would work but in those days no-one had access to mobile phones to test it. Nice to see it put to the test at last!
    Gerry Anderson was right!
    quiller

  • Comment number 2.

    I also remember "Big Ben chiming 13 times" in one of Gerry Anderson's programmes. I cant recall the exact episode, but I do remember that the goodies realised that the 13th bong was due to time it took for the sound to travel the distance from Big Ben, arriving after the 12th bong on the radio and from this they deduced where the baddies were located. It would be brilliant if someone at the ³ÉÈË¿ìÊÖ could locate the episode in the archives?

  • Comment number 3.

    loved the show! i lost my remote so watching it was an accident but im glad i did. i love stuff like this and i wish we did it in school :( especialy exploding the watermelon. cant wait too see more :D x

  • Comment number 4.

    It was the Captain Scarlet episode 'Big Ben Strikes Again' oddly enough.
    It used exactly the same methods, but despite being a children's TV show slightly less hysteria (or, more kindly, 'youthful exhuberance') than the presenters here with the explanation. Here's a link:

  • Comment number 5.

    i hate everything about this show. it is to contrived.

  • Comment number 6.

    Could you please edit out the swear words in future so I can watch this with my daughter? Thanks.

  • Comment number 7.

    Loved the way of explaining it makes it alot easier to grasp if u can't already it's a fun enjoyable new show keep up the work

  • Comment number 8.

    Brilliant show, really engaging & fun way to bring science into the living room - As a scientist the hardest thing is explaining what you do & its a great skill to be able to explain complex science in such interesting & accessible ways. Really enjoyed it, when's the next one?

  • Comment number 9.

    Simply awesome! Bumped into the show by accident and immediately captivated by the passion and simplicity used to expose complex scientific concepts (credits to the presenter I suppose). Is more coming?!?

  • Comment number 10.

    Watched Secrets of the Universe, found it quite informative. Just one little gripe and that is the distance to the moon, which Greg said it was a half a million miles. Sorry but that was incorrect, more like a quarter of a million miles(a bit less than that actually). Had to post this,I like my facts,but will still be watching again.

  • Comment number 11.

    Absolutely loved the show! As a professional astronomer who also gives a lot of talks to the public, I know how difficult it can be explaining many of these concepts without losing your audience. Greg Foot makes it look easy and fun while still getting his facts right. Hope there's more to come!

  • Comment number 12.

    Hi there,
    excellent programme! Really hoping to see more stuff explained this way. So interesting and entertaining. Fingers crossed, we'll get to see what matter is made from, how atoms work, how far we can see into "life" and the universe...
    Thanks

  • Comment number 13.

    What a brilliant show, stumbled onto it while flicking through the channels and was hooked.

  • Comment number 14.

    Whoever convinced you to go on TV committed a crime. I see lots of you on lame American channels, apply there and leave the descent ³ÉÈË¿ìÊÖ alone please.

    Thanks

  • Comment number 15.

    Saw the programme about making Big Ben strike 13 and I agree with a previous poster, the whole thing is so contrived, and Greg Foot comes across as being a bit of a pratt. Perhaps he should try Blue Peter. The science is interesting enough but he's so patronising and his over blown self-importance swamps just about everything (which is a bit of a shame).

    - sa

  • Comment number 16.

    I thoroughly enjoyed this programme - Greg Foot explained the answers to some of science's most interesting questions with such enthusiasm and an obvious passion for his subject, and in such an uncomplicated and comprehensible way. I wish I'd had a science teacher like that at school. Please say there'll be more?

  • Comment number 17.

    just seen this tv prog .....seems so so ..as some of your figures are a bit out..and please if you are going to talk about something as important to cosmology as the (CMB)..COSMIC MICROWAVE BACKGROUND..then please don`t say some guys....(ARNO PENZIAS , ROBERT WILSON , 1963) give them the credit they deserve ...

  • Comment number 18.

    My 4 children find science at school 'boring' which is appalling, but were enthralled by this programme. There may well have been some minor flaws , but that should not detract from something seriously lacking in science education - CREATIVITY and PASSION.
    I thought it was excellent!

  • Comment number 19.

    Loved this show. Its great to see someone explain concepts that are difficult to comprehend and yet are a part of our everyday lives. The presenters passion and personalisation of the subject made it all the more memorable. Top marks. Can’t wait for future episodes.

  • Comment number 20.

    Superb! This programme is a great example of how to teach science in an exciting way, education officials should take note.
    If only it were allowed to be shown in deep south America where creationism is rife!

  • Comment number 21.

    Isn't light also a particle as well as a wave? The big bang shouldn't really be compared to as a explosion, really it was a big expansion.

  • Comment number 22.

    Sound and Light,

    One summer evening in Peterborough I was watching the speedway on Sky Sports in an hotel close to the track. The windows were open so I was also receiving the sound of the races and the announcer direct from the track. I soon noticed that the two were synchronised. It seems that the distances were just right for the time taken by the sound to travel direct through the atmosphere to be equal to the delay in the TV signal going up to and coming back from the satellite. Beats Big Ben chiming 13!

  • Comment number 23.

    Monkey and the Paint Ball Gun

    Dubious ballistics. I bet you would not try it again with a Kalashnikov.

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