Ineffably magnificent…

The following lamp looks like creating a whole… Universe…:
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Xenon_Flash_Wiki.ogv (High-speed, slow-motion video of a xenon flashtube recorded at a speed of 44,025 frames per second…)

I learned about the arc lamp when I was a kid, watching Connections on PBS. John Burke explains it in one episode, and it appears during the title sequence of every episode. IIRC, it was invented to replace theater stage lights, where previously were lit by oil lamps, that had a tendency to start the set on fire.

Here it is : https://archive.org/details/ConnectionsByJamesBurke/Connections/Season+3/Connections+S03E03+-+Drop+the+Apple.mp4

I worked with one in the 80s to do large-format B&W jewelry photography. After a few hours of work, I had a sunburn on one side of my face.

I learned about these from the projectionist where I worked, back when I was a kid. When they’d get taken out of a projector and thrown in the garbage, he’d smash them on the ground to get the tungsten electrodes out. Apparently they both looked cool, like the surface of the moon, and sold for a lot!