Measuring the voltage, current, and light output of a strobe flash lamp (Speedotron 4803)

I wired up a high-power photography strobe light to my oscilloscope and made some measurements of the input voltage, current and light output.

First test with 4.8KJ xenon flash lamp (Speedotron 4803 strobe light)

This video shows my entry into the world of high-intensity flash tubes. I was inspired by the work done by the famous Doc Edgerton who built a strobe system for nighttime aerial photography. I've heard the biggest system he built was somewhere between 50 and 75 KJ per flash -- the power needed to illuminate the ground from 1000 feet in the air!

The system in this video is a Speedotron 4803, which delivers up to 4800J per flash. Photographers use the units watt-seconds (Ws) to describe the energy in each flash, which are the same as Joules. I plan to add capacitance to the bank in order to increase the total discharge power, but the voltage may also need to be adjusted since the higher power flashes also tend to require higher voltages. I'm also planning to try different xenon flash tubes, which are capable of more intense flashes.

DIY searchlight housing for 1000W xenon arc lamp

Original test run of 1000W arc lamp:
http://benkrasnow.blogspot.com/2010/04/first-test-run-of-1000w-osram-xenon.html

I finally finished the 1000W xenon searchlight project that I started earlier this year. The power supply is a slightly modified arc welder coupled with an automotive ignition coil for the starting pulse.


This is the searchlight's beam shooting skyward behind a large pine tree in my back yard. The beam is very difficult to capture on video.

First test run of 1000W Osram xenon short arc lamp

I have now built this lamp into a searchlight housing.

UPDATE: http://benkrasnow.blogspot.com/2010/10/diy-searchlight-housing-for-1000w-xenon.html



I made a short video showing a test of an Osram 1000W xenon short arc lamp. I plan to build this lamp into a searchlight housing.