All the way back in 1873, chemist Sir William Crookes noticed that the sunlight shining on his balance scale was disturbing some of the chemical samples he was weighing. Furrowing his brow, a bit of investigation led him to the invention of the Radiometer, an easy to use example of a heat engine as the by-product of chemical research!

So how does the Radiometer work? Well, your Radiometer consists of an airtight glass bulb with much of the air removed. Inside the bulb is a rotor with 4 metal vanes, which are silver on one side, and black on the other. When exposed to heat or light, the vanes will begin to spin. This is an example of thermodynamics!

You see, the black side of the vanes heats up quicker than the silver, the air molecules left inside the globe heat up when they touch the black side, and cool when they move away from it. This causes a small current of air that turn the vanes, making them spin. So set your Radiometer somewhere where it will be exposed to light or heat, then watch the vanes turn by themselves! At 22cm tall, your Radiometer rotor will spin continuously up to 3,000 RPM!

This is not a toy, made of glass.

Crooke's Radiometer Reviews

BrianImage
Brian - Verified Customer

5 October

(5)

Brilliant way to simulate curiosity in physics. In direct sunlight it really spins

Terry Daly - Reviewer

16 November

(5)

I was delighted by the prompt fulfilling of my recent order of a Crook's Radiometer from CoolThings. It was well packed and came in quick time. Thank you CoolTHings!

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(5) Lyn - Verified Customer

Bought three items which I know will delight their recipients. So many other great 3d puzzles and interesting toys to choose from. Quick arrival in the post, and my order also came with a cute little gift! Thank you. I will definitely be ordering again!...

(5) Amanda - Verified Customer

If you are looking for fun and unique gifts for the whole family, this is the place for you! Hilarious and very reasonably priced - and an Ozzie company. ...

(5) Patrice Anderson - Verified Customer

Four family members will be thrilled to receive their unique 3D Puzzle boxes. Before buying, I reviewed the items on Coolthings and other online sources. The prices were reasonable, and I was purchasing from an established Australian business, which is important to me....

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Well done Cool Things team. I recently placed 2 orders of various items for Christmas presents. Everything ordered arrived in a timely fashion and was well packed and nothing missing. I loved the UGears freebies. Great work. ...

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I’m so glad I stumbled across your website when looking for gifts for my very smart almost 14 years old grandson.I found so many things to choose from.He’s only in year 7 but does year 11 /12 maths in their classroom.everything came well packaged and delivered so quickly as well, Thank you so much for your excellent service,now that I’ve found you ...

(5) K Perry - Verified Customer

Very pleased with whole transaction. Reasonable price, well packaged, item as described and arrived as indicated....

(5) Sharon Howe - Verified Customer

I recently purchased a number of items for giving at Christmas. It is premature to ask me to review them at this stage! Last December I furnished you with an enthusiastic review for the zip string laser, which I note is still promoting the product. It was done with goodwill and authenticity (but did not, alas, impress sufficiently to earn the $50 v...

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I recently purchased from Cool Things for the first time. My goods arrived extremely well packaged, unusual in this day and age, and very quickly. Communication was great and goods are exactly as described. Will definitely visit this shop online again....

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