What are the ingredients in fireworks?

Invented in China, fireworks are composed of a variety of ingredients, including aluminum, Vaseline and gunpowder. The gunpowder inside each firework creates pressure in gas that is trapped inside a tube or mortar, which gives each rocket its lift.

The exterior casing of commercial fireworks is constructed of tubes, hollow spheres and paper, which create a barrier to hold all of the main ingredients inside. The shells contain a mixture of several different powdery chemicals that work together to create a visual effect as well as whistles and bangs. Loud booms come from flash powder, and different metals and oxides combine together to create sound.