An Electrifying Christmas Light Display, Courtesy of Nikola Tesla

Tuesday, December 22, 2009 - 13:28 in Physics & Chemistry

A physics fanatic down under is having a very Tesla Christmas this year, creating a 30-foot electrifying display of yuletide cheer by attaching a rotating rod to the top of a Tesla coil, making for quite the colorful Christmas tree. Using such specialized science tools as a fishing rod and sinker, household power, and a Nikon D300, physician and Tesla buff Peter Terren manipulated 500,000 volts at a time to produce the images seen here. Using what he calls "electrickery," Dr. Terren -- known for a few other Tesla coil adventures including an electro-colorful remake of Rodin's "Thinker" -- used a really long exposure on his camera, several different lens filters and his knowledge of physics to create the high-voltage scene, manipulating the rod to create different visual effects. Nothing in the images is Photoshopped, but someone watching Dr. Terren create the images would see something quite different than...

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