Japanese start-up 'Hoshinchu' creates floating bonsai trees by harnessing the power of repelling magnets to make the miniature plants levitate.
'Hoshinchu', a Japanese start-up in Southern Japan, has gathered over half-a-million dollars in funding for its new project 'Air Bonsai.' The cultivation of the miniature plant is an ancient Japanese botanical art, but the company has added a hint of modern technology to make the plants floats with the power of magnetic levitation.
'Air Bonsai' consists of two elements - the floating plant or living moss ball which contains a built-in magnet and can weigh a maximum of 250 grams (0.55 lb) and be up to six centimetres (2.36 inches) in diameter, while the "energy base" also has a built-in magnet and runs on an AC adapter. The two magnets have the same poles, with the repelling force carefully balanced so that the bonsai trees 'float' on an invisible cushion of magnetic energy.
On crowd-funding site Kickstarter, 'Hoshinchu' has received more than half a million U.S. dollars for the project after launching with an initial goal of just 80,000 USD in January. The start-up aims to ship its products this August, according to its website.
