Plasma-sprayed molten molybdenum and amorphous steel particles (38-55 mu m diameter) were photographed during impact (velocity 120-200 m/s) and spreading on a smooth glass surface that was maintained at either room temperature or 400 degrees C. Droplets approaching the surface were identified by a photodetector and after a known delay, a 5-ns laser pulse was triggered to illuminate the spreading splat and photograph it with a charge-coupled device (CCD) camera. A rapid two-color pyrometer was used to collect thermal radiation from particles during flight and impact to follow the evolution of their temperature and size. Particles that impacted the surface at room temperature ruptured and splashed, leaving a small central solidified core on the substrate. On a surface held at 400 degrees C, there was no splashing and a circular, disk-like splat remained on the surface. Splats on a glass surface held at room temperature had a maximum spread diameter almost three times that on a hot surface. A simple analysis was done to estimate the area of the splat in contact with the non-heated glass surface during spreading. The analysis supports the hypothesis that only a portion of the splat is in good contact with the surface at room temperature, while the rest of the fluid is separated from the substrate by a gas barrier. (c) 2006 Elsevier B.V All rights reserved.