Skip to main content
Smokescreens in science and technology
Despite what military technology claims, invisibility remains a matter of perspective, write ROX MIDDLETON, LIAM SHAW and JOEL HELLEWELL
A photo portrait of Alfred Nobel (1833-96)

MUCH of Britain enjoyed explosives this weekend in bonfire night celebrations. If you want to make fireworks at home, you can. 

Without any legal hassle, you’ve got the right to use up to 100g of gunpowder which those in the know call “black powder.” 

You can either prepare it yourself using a chemistry recipe (there is a wikihow guide), or you can buy it online, for example imported from Germany or China. 

The 95th Anniversary Appeal
Support the Morning Star
You have reached the free limit.
Subscribe to continue reading.
Similar stories
HIGH SPIRITS: During a school activity in a park in Havana on March 4 2026 while a man holds up a photo of Fidel Castro with an ‘in my heart’ message
Latin America / 14 March 2026
14 March 2026

As the US intensifies its economic and political pressure it is now vitally important to demand the British government intervene to end US aggression, writes GEOFF BOTTOMS

Shops are closed during protests in Tehran's centuries-old main bazaar, Iran, January 6, 2026
Features / 19 January 2026
19 January 2026

Trump threatens war and punitive tariffs to recapture Iranian resources – just as in 1953, when the CIA overthrew Mossadegh and US corporations immediately seized 40% of the oil, says SEVIM DAGDELEN

HMS Spey in Brisbane, Australia ahead of the England v Nigeria Women's World Cup match. The arrival of the state-of-the-art Offshore Patrol Vessel HMS Spey marks the first visit of the Royal Navy to Brisbane since the HMS Monmouth in 1995. Picture date: Monday August 7th, 2023
Features / 15 August 2025
15 August 2025

From 35,000 troops in Talisman Sabre war games to HMS Spey provocations in the Taiwan Strait, Labour continues Tory militarisation — all while claiming to uphold ‘one China’ diplomatic agreements from 1972, reports KENNY COYLE