Magnesium pyromaniac

I had a feeling that was magnesium powder at first. A strip of it would've simply shone consistently without much of a hiss. (If you must, I recommend alkali earth metal powder, like green copper salts, don't go alkali. Too much trouble.) Don't try to put out an active magnesium fire with water. It just speeds up the reaction. "When the magnesium burns, it reacts with the oxygen to form magnesium oxide. ... When magnesium interacts with water, it will form a hydrogen gas that ignites violently due to the excessive heat and oxygen supply. " You want to extinguish it with dirt or sand, that's really the only way to put it out quickly. For future reference. I don't blame you for being fascinated by magnesium's reaction. It's one of my favorite metals. It also burns the hottest, above 2000 degrees. Here's a safer experiment. Take a pipe cut the long way and lie it out horizontal. Sprinkle magnesium down the length of it so there is a consistent, thin connected "rope." Light one end for the reaction. You could also do this wit the guts of a dissected firework (which I've tried) or with gunpowder, (which is MUCH more explosive, so don't let that bag catch fire.) Hope that was helpful.