Salute (pyrotechnics)

Salute (pyrotechnics)

In pyrotechnics a salute is a device primarily designed to make a loud report (bang), and may or may not have a visual effect. Most salutes will also have a very bright flash and are made from many different formulas depending on manufacturer and desired effect. They may have aluminum, antimony, titanium and other metals added for sparks or flash effects. The salute may be fired on the ground (ground salute) or launched from a mortar as a shell (aerial salute). Salutes are one of the more dangerous type fireworks. The "guns" (a.k.a. mortar tubes) used to launch the aerial salutes in a commercial fireworks display vary from 1.75 inch diameter up to 5 inch diameter. Most of the "salutes" are made with flash powder. The burning of flash powder is dependant on the pressure, unlike black powder which burns at roughly the same rate whether contained or not. As mentioned above, what constitutes flash powder varies from manufacturer to manufacturer.

The amount of flash powder contained in any salute can vary widely according to both physical size, number of individual charges as well as by manufacturer.