Hot Enough to Fry an Egg – er, Camera

I probably should have done a little more scientific research on solar egg frying before diving into the Great Egg Experiment of 2013, but the heat has gotten the better of my journalistic integrity. 

I had the bright idea to try and fry an egg outside, just to see if it was possible. I know the old cliche, "hot enough to fry an egg on the pavement" probably applies to actually cracking an egg on the hot asphalt. But I brought a stainless steel frying pan because I'm all about keeping Nashua clean. 

My experiment took place at the thermometer/clock on Main Street at high noon. One hour later I had a congealed egg and a fried camera. In between I had lots of comments and advice from passers by who snapped photos of my egg experiment. 

One guy suggested I move my pan off the bricks and onto the street. "And get a black frying pan," he said. 

And then there was the guy who reinforced my lack of originality, coupled with my great news sense.

"Oh, just like in Death Valley, where people are getting in trouble for frying eggs on the pavement," he said.

I quickly "Googled Death Valley" and "eggs" and discovered he was right – tourists are getting a big kick out of frying eggs there, where the temperature has been teetering in the 120 degree zone, much to the National Park Rangers' dismay.

Anyway, halfway through my experiment, the display on my digital camera started flashing and then I got an alert, basically telling me that my camera was fried. 

In the end, my camera made a quick recovery and , as it turned out, there was no exciting time lapse video to be had, anyway – my egg never really cooked; it just started getting gloppy. Or as one pedestrian observe, "Looks like salmonella."

Anyway, for your entertainment, my (Not so) Great Egg Experiment.

Music: "Hottentot" by M.A.G. Trio from Creative Commons Freemusicarchive.org.