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Turns Out Melons Make Good Molds for Molten Metal

Science continues to seek out answers to the great questions of our time, and it has just answered a big one: what happens when you pour molten aluminum into a melon. It turns out you get some pretty interesting conversation pieces for your coffee table.

YouTuber TheBackyardScientist cut holes into three melons, two cantaloupes and one honeydew melon, and then added smaller holes for ventilation. After melting down the aluminum in a propane-powered foundry, the aluminum was poured into the hole. The slo-mo shots look like they were inspired by Terminator 2.

You might expect the melons to melt or maybe even explode, but, with very little taken out of them, the fruit is strong enough to withstand the intense heat. The result is a metal cast of a melon’s empty spaces.

The honeydew mold ends up looking like a very cool, very artsy hand grenade. The cantaloupes produce something that looks like a metal recreation of the horse heart Daenerys Targaryen ate.

This isn’t the first time the backyard laboratory was used to pour melted aluminum into a fruit. The initial experiment was actually done with a watermelon, and the end result was a fascinating cast that seeped into the seeds spread throughout, creating a fascinating, flower-like mold (though it could also double as an alien’s spine).

What do you think, fruit or otherwise, could be used to create something interesting with this method? Share your best ideas right here.

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