Mini Fitzroy's Storm Glass

The Fitzroy's Storm Glass is one of those unusual yet amazing little things that you happen to stumble across from time to time. It is a fancy bit of science that will help you to accurately predict the kind of weather that is looming on the horizon!

While this may seem somewhat unbelievable, Fitzroy's Storm Glass is a historical weather forecasting device that was used by seafarers on the HMS Beagle in the 1800's to predict windy weather or thunderstorms at sea!

You can now forecast the weather by observing the appearance of the liquid in the glass. When the temperature and pressure of the atmosphere change with different weather patterns, the water and crystals inside the glass change too!

This is based on the principle that temperature and pressure affect solubility, sometimes resulting in clear liquid, and other times causing precipitants to form. The liquid in the glass is a mixture of several ingredients including distilled water, ethanol, potassium nitrate, ammonium chloride and camphor.

How to read:

• A: Clear Liquid - Bright and clear weather
• B: Cloudy Liquid - Sometimes with small stars and crystals at the top. Cloudy weather and often predicts thunderstorms and rain
• C: Small Stars in Liquid - Humid or foggy weather
• D: Large Flaky Crystals - Cloudy skies, snow in winter
• E: Threads of Crystals At The Top - Winy weather
• F: Crystals At The Bottom - Frost may be coming