Nuclear reactor startup (with sound)
youtu.be
A nuclear reactor, formerly known as an atomic pile, is a device used to initiate and control a fission nuclear chain reaction or nuclear fusion reactions. N...

I was inspired by someone’s username and found this video. A video much like this one was one of the things that got me into studying physics to begin with over a decade ago.

The characteristic blue glow is caused by Cherenkov radiation, which is analogous to a sonic boom, but instead of a jet breaking the sound barrier, it’s charged particles moving faster than the phase velocity of light in a medium (normally water).

Pretty cool, I think.