Inside This Year's Olympic Torch
The Olympic Torch is currently making its way through Brazil as a part of the traditional relay that signifies the start of the Olympic Games. In honor of the events in Rio, the team behind the YouTube channel What's Inside got their hands on one of this year's authentic torches and decided to find a way to get to its core. It turns out the process was a lot harder than they anticipated.
This year's torch—designed by Brazilian firm Chelles and Hayashi—is crafted out of recycled aluminum and has expanding sections that reveal metallic resin details in colors representing both nature and the Brazilian flag.
After ensuring that there was no fuel cell in the base of the torch, the What's Inside guys were free to cut into it without the risk of an explosion from the sparks. After burning through a couple angle grinders, upgrading to a bigger, more powerful machine, and dealing with power issues, they finally reached the torch's core to reveal reinforced internal components and the locking spring and fuel delivery system.
At least one of the torches made for the Olympics is still en route to the Games, but the one in the video above has seen its flame extinguished permanently.
[h/t Gizmodo]
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