Steam locomotive firemen reportedly fried breakfast on their coal shovels. Would it work in a firebox at about 1,300°C?
Trial 1 came out charcoal on the outside and raw on the inside.

This is an AI-simulated experiment set in a restored steam locomotive cab, run with no people, only an unmanned robot arm and a thermal camera. The black-and-white scenes at the start and end are reenactments.

▶ What happens
· Trial 1: an egg goes onto a dry shovel at 25°C and straight into the flame core. The blade tops an estimated 300°C, the bottom burns and the yolk stays under about 65°C. Failed.
· The fix: hose the shovel clean and lock the target at 170°C, below bacon fat's smoke point of about 190°C.
· Trial 2: bacon goes first for an estimated 1–2 minutes to grease the blade, then a fresh egg for an estimated 2–3 minutes. The whites pass about 80°C and fully set; the yolk stays jammy below about 70°C.

▶ Reference numbers (sources vary)
· Firebox: about 1,300°C
· Egg whites start setting at about 62°C and fully set at about 80°C
· Yolks set at about 65–70°C
· Shovel surface target range: 150–180°C, locked at 170°C (a value chosen for this experiment, not a scientific rule)

⚠️ Put a shovel straight into the flames and you can end up with a charred outside and a raw inside. Never try this at home or on a running locomotive.

▶ Timeline
00:00 Black-and-white reenactment
00:06 The 1,300°C firebox
00:12 When an egg sets
00:18 Robot arm setup
00:24 Egg onto a dry shovel
00:30 Trial 1 countdown
00:36 Into the flame core
00:42 Trial 1: failed
00:48 What went wrong
00:54 Washing the shovel
01:00 Finding 170°C
01:06 Bacon first
01:12 Trial 2 with a fresh egg
01:18 Cross-section and verdict
01:24 Experiment complete