Matches, for lack of a batter term, are pretty hot right now. They can be used to start fires for cooking, illuminate dark areas, and provide warmth during cold nights. Matches are also pretty combustible and thus are used by artists and YouTube creators to produce some awesome matchstick art.
Previously, we’ve covered a 52,000 matchstick volcano which erupted into cinders, a 10,000 match flaming skull which provided some prime nightmare fuel, and a 5,000 matchstick chain which left a charred patch of wood in its wake as prime examples of modern matchstick art.
So far, these matchstick masterpieces have ended in an eruption of flame and smoky remains, but what if you could make a matchstick creation you could send into space?
YouTube creator Mokso recently took a mind-numbing 20,000 matchsticks and arranged them in such a way he thinks would make them space-worthy. For him, this means gluing a ton of matches to a cardboard tube to craft a miniature space shuttle.
Using a glue gun, he sticks a toilet paper roll on top of the bigger cardboard tube to give the spacecraft its shape. He adds one smaller cardboard tube on top of the toilet roll to provide the spacecraft with a pointed tip before coating the entire thing in matches. While the primary tubes have matchhead-less matches glues to their exterior, the gaps between the tubes have rings of full matches surrounding them.
Now for the fun part: Mokso pours the matchheads he removed into a gap at the bottom of the spacecraft. These matchheads effectively turns a once harmless tube of wood and cardboard into a bonafide firecracker. With the spacecraft now full of “fuel,” Mokso glues the container shut and adds some toiler roll wings as well as a fuse to the bottom of the craft. To prepare the ship for her first (and most likely last) voyage, he paints it accordingly.
He then glues a small matchstick chain right next to the fuse to give him ample time to return to safety before the launch. Once the fuse is lit, the space shuttle lets out an explosion at the base and…
… goes absolutely nowhere.
After a brief sputter of flame and smoke, the craft topples down lifeless to planet Earth. Nevertheless, the matchstick art makes for some pretty serious eye candy. Find more of Mokso’s DIY shenanigans on his YouTube channel.
