Watch Science Turn A Gummy Bear Into A Gigantic Dancing Fireball

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If only high school science had been this much fun.

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Vat19 shows us what happens when you drop a harmless little gummy bear into a vat of boiling Potassium Chlorate:

Gummy Bear 1

YouTube/Vat19

Poor guy.

An online lecture demo from the University of Massachusetts Amherst explains that "the thermal decomposition of potassium chlorate produces potassium chloride and an excess of oxygen, which is sufficient to ignite the gummy bear." The heat decomposes the potassium chlorate, which causes the combustion reaction.

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But that's just a tiny gummy bear.

What about the world's largest gummy bear?

Gummy Bear 2

YouTube/Vat19

It's 5lbs and the size of a human head, basically.

Gummy Bear 4

YouTube/Vat19

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Don't try this at home.

Gummy Bear 6

YouTube/Vat19

You can watch the full video from Vat19 below:

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