My skin prickles

The rocket is now firing again and the flames elsewhere can be allowed to die down.

With a little help from my trusty (rusty) hacksaw and drill the new closure plate for the rayburn has been persuaded to fit. It's been running about an hour and seemes to be OK. However part of the process required cutting of some mineral fibre rope, and just like glass wool, the fibres have stuck in my skin in odd places.

I've just got back from work now, having popped in to top up the liquid nitrogen conatiners we keep cells frozen in.

LN2 is amazing stuff.

It has a crystaline transparency that water cannot match, and because it is so inert, all polished surfaces stay that way without corrosion. Looking down into the biggest dewar (vacuum flask to non-scientists) you have a brilliant clear view to the bottom. All that disappears when you stop adding nitrogen, as the moisture in the air condenses in the freezing gas stream, turning to fog.

Nice.