4th of July firework colors come from different elements of the periodic table — here's what fuels red, white, and blue stars in the sky

America is celebrating its independence this week, but there's nothing revolutionary about the way 4th of July fireworks are made.

Fireworks have been built from a mix of explosive powder, chemicals, and glue for hundreds of years; the earliest fireworks shows date back more than 1,000 years, well before the US made its debut as a country 243 years ago.

Not all fireworks are built the same — you can't get a burst to look red by using the same ingredients as the ones inside a blue or white firework. That's because the color of a firework explosion depends on which kinds of elements are inside, from common metals to rarer minerals and even some salts.

Pyrotechnicians call these bursts of colored light "stars," and they're made of a mixture of fuel, oxidizer (to help the fuel burn), color-producing elements (like aluminum or copper), and a binder (glue), all packed inside a shell. That shell gets fired high into the air before a time-delayed fuse spits fire onto the stars and they take off.

California-based pyrotechnician and electrical engineer Mike Tockstein, who prepared the Los Angeles Coliseum for its 4th of July show last year, told Business Insider that it takes days of pounding, digging, wiring, and "well over 10,000 pounds of equipment" to set up for that kind of event.

So before you peer up into the sky this Independence Day, take a look at some of the common elements that are making your celebration possible.