Are Godzilla’s Flying Monsters Big Enough?

The King of the Monsters and his fellow colossal companions have been trampling their way across film history for decades. They've all seen updates, redesign, and even a few growth spurts over the years, but are Godzilla's winged co-stars big enough? Kyle takes flight as he explores this kaiju conundrum in this week's Because Science!
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Because Science every Thursday.
Learn More:
FLIGHT AND SCALING OF FLIERS IN NATURE: www.witpress.com/Secure/elibr...
KAIJU STATISTICS: gojirastomp.tripod.com/gfacts/...
MONSTERVERSE KING GHIDORAH: godzilla.fandom.com/wiki/King...)
QUETZALCOATLUS: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quetzal...
WORLD’S SMALLEST FLIER: blogs.bu.edu/biolocomotion/201...
CONVERGENT EVOLUTION: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Converg...

[@becausescience]

Thanks for watching Super Nerds! This was a fun one to calculate just for the ridiculous sizes we came up with. Also, seems to be a few bumblebee truthers in the comments. I'll see you in Footnotes, but you should know that bumblebee flight does in fact make perfect sense with physics and evolution. Oh, and go see the new Godzilla movie -- it's a lot of fun! -- kH

[@bhuvaneshs.k638]

Hello I'm a big of your work.... Ur videos are really awesome.... I'm surprised to see u didn't cover The Expanse series, the best ever Can you please do a video on explaining The Expanse series stuff like Protomolecule (like Von Neumann Self replicate nano Bots), Epstein drive, The Ring's inertia field, The crazy colonisation of Solar system.... It's the best series ever .... Please please do a video on Science of The Expanse....

[@thanes101]

Yeahh even I'm wondering why he didn't cover this ryt !? The Expanse series is just mind-blowing

[@woody4077]

bigger monsters...um i'll pass

[@plasmaburndeath]

If only we could canonically add something like this nano muscle, combined with some sort of radiation powered [RTG like electrical generation affect] to explain their tiny size to weight ratio. phys.org/news/2017-08-muscle-nano-sized-device-weight.html "Imagine repeatedly lifting 165 times your weight without breaking a sweat-a feat normally reserved for heroes like Spider-Man. Rutgers University-New Brunswick engineers have discovered a simple, economical way to make a nano-sized device that can match the friendly neighborhood Avenger, on a much smaller scale. Their creation weighs 1.6 milligrams (about as much as five poppy seeds) and can lift 265 milligrams (the weight of about 825 poppy seeds) hundreds of times in a row."

[@Mr0T]

But as the wings get bigger the weigh of them gets more so you need more power and finally its impossible to fly ,can you tell what's the maximum possible wing length for flying monsters in Godzilla is? Or how much should they weigh with the same wing length?

[@PaleozoicProductions]

Kyle: So, Ghidorah would require billions of watts Ghidorah: *laughs in electrical-gravitational beams*

[@Earthenfist]

Isn't it canon somewhere that Ghidora only is able to fly due to manipulating gravitons around himself?

[@succubastard1019]

@@Earthenfist That's the case for Mecha-King Ghidorah. I don't remember about the regular King Ghidorah though.

[@RichardCide5090]

Laughs in Orca mating calls

[@sapphireeniigma-8027]

*bidibidibidibidi*

[@deathhog]

Yes, because we see ghidorah can fly while missing a wing. Pretty sure the wings are less about flying and more about blocking.

[@zedspoint4614]

Kyle: they have to be from space for it to work *laughs in Ghidorah*

[@keelanbarron928]

...so you would just roar as Ghidorah?

[@thealmightyoreoking]

BIDIBIDIBIDI

[@MegaBusterDude]

Doesnt Ghidorah have like 2 or 3 origin stories?

[@wallahhabibiiii]

lmao hahahah

[@Texasmade74]

@@MegaBusterDude yes

[@tiernanmcculloch]

Ghidorah is also an alien... so it literally DOES have otherworldly power.

[@tiernanmcculloch]

@@InsaneLiving wasn't pointing out them, for them it is legitimate, but with Ghidorah he literally pointed out the reason why his wing size doesn't matter, and didn't even notice. He is an alien, he clearly has abilities that are otherworldly. Actually though, the fact that he is pointing out the logic of Rodans wings, when Rodan's blood is literally lava, just shows that he is trying to put science into something that has never tried to be close to scientifically accurate. Same with Mothra, she can transfer her life into other kaiju to revive them. Godzilla has never tried to be scientifically right, so I really just don't get the point of pointing out one small detail that doesn't make sense, since neither does anything else really.

[@ominous-omnipresent-they]

They all have otherworldly power if you think about it.

[@ttrash6404]

is not about otherworldly power its about physics

[@thalmoragent9344]

Danté Smith True. Just like his head regrowing like that. Freaky stuff.

[@corriethomson4431]

@Danté Smith what do you mean "modern day ideology"?

[@NDKfilms]

*hears Kyle's pronunciation for Ghidorah* *crawls up into ball* *tries not cry* *cries a lot*

[@gregmcpeters7951]

I feel you.

[@darthadipose1920]

I’m pretty sure that it was pronounced that way in one movie.

[@NDKfilms]

@@darthadipose1920 no it wasn't

[@darthadipose1920]

NDKfilms ok, whatever you say...

[@StephenxTehxLefty]

I stopped watching right after that

[@rhys5525]

“Unless it had *other worldly* muscles, it would be able to fly” All OG Godzilla fans thinking the same thing.

[@GodofWhoopass]

There's trillions of planets with different gravity and oxygen levels so I'm sure life bigger than the dinosaurs evolved somewhere out there.

[@rhys5525]

Zombie Raccoons That’s exactly what I’m saying,(spoilers for new film), he comes from space. It’s said that he erased all life from Venus and even consumed hole sola systems. Yes that was the Hasia era of Godzilla, but well ye he’s not from Earth

[@fa5353]

@@rhys5525 wait your confusing me. Did they confirm that he wiped out life in other planets in KotM, because that was showa and 1998 ghidorah's thing. The heisei couldn't travel in space, hes an earth monster. Idk, I should remember (considering that this is my film of the year)

[@HelloPokebowl]

f a Well it depends on the Series in this one he’s a space monster in most movies he is in a little bit he was created by aliens but he was never a earth monster ghidorah is a alien that travels through the universe destroying planets.

[@ImperatorNocturne]

funny thing is if he evolved in space or a different planet with less gravity it would still mean that he can´t fly on earth.

[@syphes21]

The 3 headed Kyle was hella freaky. More "The Thing" (1982) than "Godzilla"

[@rosehearttoxic1691]

Did you know that there is a movie called Godzilla vs the thing

[@thebruhmoment3329]

@@rosehearttoxic1691 that was just godzilla vs mothra

[@brianmccann666]

The 1982 The Thing can defeat Godzilla. Godzilla walking along. Stop. The human sized Thing run over to Gdz's Foot. And starts to merge with his flesh. Gdz doesnt even notice. Later Gdz in fight again Ghidorah. Gdz's Face and chest slits open and swallows Ghidorah whole. And repeat. The Thing conquers the World.

[@syphes21]

@@brianmccann666 Thats assuming The thing is immune to the radiation contained in Godzilla's body.

[@syphes21]

@@rosehearttoxic1691 I only remembered when you mentioned it. I just called the Movie Godzilla vs Mothra haha

[@Primordial_Entity]

You didn't even get to the part where Gidorah lifts godzilla, like 2000m or 3000m

[@mongooseunleashed]

There is one movie where Godzilla judo throws Gidorah.

[@thereyvan]

Destiny's Way yea

[@nek_apollonpvp4553]

Higher than 3000m

[@mobyhuge4346]

@@mongooseunleashed Yeah Final Wars, judo slams a 100.000 ton version of him

[@ahedjehad8514]

@@mobyhuge4346 that is basically what Judo is: using your opponents weight against them. so, in this case, Ghidorah weighs more than the big Z, and just imagine our boy 'Zilla just casually tosses Ghidorah over his shoulder. my question is: WHERE DID HE LEARN JUDO?! also, Godzilla knows boxing and other martial arts. again: WHERE DID HE LEARN MARTIAL ARTS?! AND HOW?!

[@gregday4682]

Should we mention to him that Godzilla can preform gravity defying drop kicks?

[@NinjaBunny451]

Greg Day no it would break him. Shhhh

[@gregday4682]

@@NinjaBunny451 then i guess the fact he can also fly by grabbing his tail between is legs and using he atomic breath is also off the table? (Yes that is a thing from the old godzilla movies, they were really weird)

[@NinjaBunny451]

Greg Day never mind him I need help now

[@user-td3ke9st9m]

Also how he can dance

[@user-sz3rs6hr1h]

showa godzilla can, none others though

[@diobacardio7188]

Therapist: 3 headed kyle isn't real it can't hurt you 3 headed kyle: 9:44

[@ronsonsiliado8724]

More like 9:47

[@ryanm7832]

I jumped ahead just to see that part after reading comments. That was freakin' hilarious! Kyle's as funny as he is smart! (To clarify: That last statement isn't solely based on Ghid-yle. Lol)

[@zadesirius]

i need a therapist now after seen 3 headed kyle

[@the_alaskan_yeti2652]

King Ghidorah: Attacks Godzilla: *HOW MANY TIMES MUST WE TEACH YOU THIS LESSON, OLD MAN?!*

[@oucyan]

Men* Ghidorah has 3 brains.

[@evilovesperry]

@@oucyan man. He has 1 body and the three brains contribute to the one body, plus only one brain is primary

[@IsaiahSenku]

😂😂

[@yoshidinono8095]

I see that you have daddy issues.

[@bukiman4311]

at least he doesn't give up

[@nickx2758]

Ghidorah is literally a weird alien that doesn't follow the biological rules we know, like oxygen. He can also spit graviton beams and is a giant moving thunderstorm so yeah.

[@corriethomson4431]

Yeah well, Destroyah is of earth and way weirder in his abilities.

[@itshawx4697]

"...would need otherworldly muscles.." Ahem....I dunno how to tell you this but....Ghidorah is actually an alien...

[@timothymclean]

Pretty sure that's the joke...

[@byronsmothers8064]

That end tangent: unless they're from space. ...have I got news for you!

[@MR-1]

Byron Smothers Space Goji?

[@byronsmothers8064]

@@MR-1 nah, feels too early for that one, maybe down the line perhaps

[@darthraptor97]

XD

[@yuhyuhyuh6873]

Byron Smothers space Godzilla would make the new Monsterverse TOO far gone 👀💯

[@creativekaiju7572]

King Ghidorah reference right?

[@Ryutix]

I wish dragons were depicted this way a little more. Wings that big are so much more badass looking.

[@barrybend7189]

Wow look at Lagi's heavy wing form from Panzer Dragoon then.

[@JoeNasr123]

Dragons have the excuse of "Because Magic."

[@atlas8827]

HE IS NOT A DRAGON HE IS A WYVERN REEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE

[@rexosuitmk2577]

@@JoeNasr123 So do titans. Animals can't just generate gamma radiation into a focused beam like Godzilla can.

[@SpinningTurtle66]

Since dragons are fantasy, I think that we should also keep their physics fantasy and keep them properly proportioned.

[@shmurblethebirdmanbarbarian]

“Otherworldly muscles” Ghidorah: hold my beer.

[@abt815]

"..a flappy flap real animal." I'm glad I just swallowed that gulp of coffee or it would be all over me.

[@itspizzatime5206]

🎶Ay ay ay, let it rain over meeee🎶

[@foxythefox3594]

9 year olds: Science makes everything boring Kyle: hold my calculator

[@josephwatson8448]

ls he going to calculate all the genders?

[@chrisadler8888]

joseph watson Who cares about those fake genders?

[@marvalice3455]

@@josephwatson8448 nah he's going to calculate the numerical value of wonder

[@wildabeatz5308]

thor*

[@justakid1340]

joseph watson 0+2

[@impadop4558]

Nobody: Godzilla: *sees Hedorah fly* Also godzilla: *proceeds to fly using atomic breath*

[@arataarter8146]

Big G: Behold for I am death

[@purpleemerald5299]

Memer *Double drop kicks through the sky.*

[@davindamico1759]

so its known that his atomic breath has to hit for 12GW at least. He should be one shotting more monsters honestly. :)

[@spacemanju7]

Lol i remember seeing that for the first time but ill up u one when Godzilla drop kicks gigan

[@mathewcrow9313]

Memer so you have seen one of the old Godzilla movies

[@Loonaticx]

You also aren't taking into account the fact that Rodan's wing flaps crushed a city.

[@GeneralLiam0529]

True, true

[@chromatic-doodlieus09]

Isla demolished

[@tebohosease7372]

always wondered how the giant dragon from the first How to Train Your Dragon was able to fly with each of its flaps being so slow. but now I know

[@daltoninge5939]

I would also like to point out that at the scale of 3000m if one wing tip followed had to flap one time every 4 seconds, the twing tip would travel at roughly 2372.3 Miles/Hour (Assuming the wing tip followed a path to make a right angle and not an arc). So that would also potentially be creating sonic booms every time ghidorah flapped it's wings ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

[@galactic1555]

Ghidorah already does that

[@levischorpioen]

Considering that's one of his actual canon powers, you're entirely correct.

[@NotHPotter]

Except then you're dealing with the shock differential, because that's the speed at the tip of the wing, not along it's entire length. This is also part of why helicopters can't go supersonic.

[@Marveryn]

its flight would disturb the air around it. Not only sonic bomb but mini hurricanes and tornadoes

[@Waelly17]

Thats so cool

[@ThatoneGuy-uk6cd]

*The way he pronounced "Ghidorah" "Gidder-ah" is hurting em internally*

[@reno2008]

it also changes every time he says it

[@manamongmen3381]

I was actually pronouncing it "geridora" since I saw mechagodzilla 2 as a kid, so now I have to get my head around the lack of "r" it has.

[@roryjs]

@Presley Hesson Gee or Ghee?

[@varanid9]

@Presley Hesson True. Not helping matters is that it's been spelled differently, too: Ghidra, Ghidrah, Ghidorah, Gidrah, etc.

[@zadesirius]

@Presley Hesson i say nope nope nope

[@Nuka0420]

Kyle: Gidderah Me: GIDOOOORAH

[@memebot4320]

Ghidrah GOHDDORHHHHEEEEAAAAAAHHHH

[@youvebeenafan]

Thank You

[@birdsaregovernmentspies8964]

“Are the monster verse monsters enough let’s look at them “ Male muto: am I a joke to you?

[@errorcode1sm399]

10:28 that jet just flew across the graph in about 1.5 seconds which would clock its speed at 4,000mps or 8,948MPH which is 11.66 times the speed of sounds, making it the fastest jet in human history. Damn The Godzilla universe has had some innovations

[@barrybend7189]

If its at an altitude of 50,000 meters that's squarely in VF-19 to VF-31 territory.

[@becausescience]

Now that's nerdy -- kH

[@NotHPotter]

Incoming Supernerd in 3... 2...

[@zuko1569]

Godzilla vs some giant flying insect _Tyranitar vs Butterfree_

[@andresrivera1638]

Zuzu and Hydreigon lol

[@michelgerber5781]

Dude mothra is an ally of godzilla

[@ArkhamJacks]

@@michelgerber5781 WHOOSH

[@moukidelmar]

More like Venomoth, but sure.

[@andresrivera1638]

Michel Gerber Mothra was actually an enemy before he became an ally.

[@brianbyles3737]

Look in awe of the mighty Kyleosauras Sciencefactacus-Rex the most scientifically accurate of all Kaiju.

[@morosis82]

2 things. 1. While the graphs say it's not possible, we have an outlier so we know it is. The graphs say what has been selected for, some form of efficiency that allows the competitiveness to stay above rivals. 2. If Ghidorah has 1.5km wings, and flaps them at 1 beat per ~4.5s, then the tips are travelling somewhere near the speed of sound.

[@liquidrock2u]

Mothra: My wings will block out the sun. Me: Then we will poop our pants in the shade.

[@kitsunekid16]

r/unexepected300?

[@LordenMiller]

Well King Ghidorah is a space dragon so...... there's your other worldly answer right there

[@-slice-6103]

Lorden Miller your*

[@atlas8827]

*Wyvern

[@Ryokoranger]

didn't Ghidorah have gravity abilities in his original design in the older movies? he didn't even really ever flap his wings. they were closer to just some scare tactic adaptation or a defensive tool in those movies.

[@MrTroodon_Official]

@@atlas8827 Actually on myths theres no diffference stated beetwen dragons and wyverns, all this number of limbs thing probably came from D&D.

[@ninboy01]

Wing angel Pretty much. He can manipulate gravity to assist his flight.

[@sonicblackhole3559]

Don't forget in the movies they were in their metabolism was described as some sort of nuclear reactor.

[@joshhanks5944]

I was wondering can you make a vehicle that is strong enough to move a person but light enough that a swarm of ants could carry it away?

[@DipUniversal]

I feel like it'd be pretty bad if it was that light, like someone could easily just carry it away without a problem

[@ReaperUnreal]

What if you did the scaling in reverse, instead of going from mass->wingspan could you go from wingspan->mass and see what the true mass would be for them as portrayed? Sure it wouldn't look as cool but it might be SLIGHTLY more realistic. Love the show!

[@hamptonhansen6498]

Assuming there was no constant multiplier for guirus' wingspan its about 5.66*10^5kg whereas the previous mass was 4.93*10^8kg

[@Funstun-yk7oo]

@@hamptonhansen6498 wow that closer than i thought

[@jimr3286]

Cool idea! Perhaps they are much lighter than credited for. Instead of redrawing them, make them lighter. ;)

[@OriginalPiMan]

@@Funstun-yk7oo From hampton hansen's numbers, it's like having to lift an apple instead of a mildly obese adult.

[@SuperDavidEF]

Oops. I just suggested the same thing before I saw your post from 5 days ago. 😒

[@travismurtland3257]

I see an important failure to include a star wars reference when you said "x wingspan".

[@andrejaeckle9828]

What if that *was* a SW reference all along?

[@Cha-Khia]

@@andrejaeckle9828 Perhaps we should look at things from... a different point of view.

[@cavityking]

I heard him say that and immediately came to the comments to see if anyone had already mentioned it. I’m happily satisfied that someone beat me to it.

[@Keltarian]

An interesting detail about Ghidora in "KotM", with the exception of when it flies away that very first time it has that Superstorm around it that seemed to be drawing air UP from below itself

[@pred6]

"Or they're from space or something." Nice.

[@KingLIFEDRAIN]

In king Ghidorahs case he not only has gravity manipulation abilities which aids his flight....he's a SPACE DRAGON. Also it is pronounced GEE-DORA

[@ThatShyGuyMatt]

I came down if anyone was going to mention it. ^_^

[@KingLIFEDRAIN]

Lmao he is my FAVORITE Kaiju and I love this guy and his channel,the name was the only thing bothering me lol.

[@gluteusmaximus8881]

Aids

[@GeorgieBonsoir]

Yeah, "Gravity powers" have many of their own problems, not gonna go into it, but he's still impossible, to say the least.

[@KingLIFEDRAIN]

King Ghidorah has been around much longer than Godzilla and I'd imagine he is a master of his power of gravity manipulation to the point that he would have no problem flying. We don't have to go into it but I will stand by my previous sentence.

[@michaelcooper1381]

Dammit, Kyle! I thought I told you to stop eating fighter jets!

[@lanottax7]

Kyle: "Or else you will be *GROUNDED*" Ghidora: *Sweats Excessively while tries to fly accurately*

[@JeantheQueen6699]

5:30 that’s about to be my favourite expression ‘I do not have one of those, what I do have tho is resEARCH!’

[@atticbear5098]

I've solved it. All flying Godzilla monsters have rocket farts.

[@VitorSalsicha]

like superman

[@p.ningen7253]

Well they're powered by basically nucleur explosions so that'd probably solve the energy part

[@Reingnus]

@OffBrandAnon Dude, Godzilla has a nuclear breath.

[@riot2136]

OffBrandAnon all of them have been stated, except ghidorah, to live off a radiation.

[@Matixxx972]

@OffBrandAnon Actually they all go by some sort of radiation and/or heat based energy in The monsterverse. Hence The Blue glow on Godzilla's Breath and Mothra's Bioluminiscence (ionizing nuclear particles glow Blue) and Rodan's Volcanic based metabolism (on The Monarch files is implied that Rodan uses heat energy from lava absorved during milennia to function.) And Ghidorah is originally a Space Monster that controls gravity and on this itteration can control Storms, Winds ans Static Energy, so he could very easily just... Levitate? Instead of flying. So there's that.

[@Reingnus]

@OffBrandAnon But you said on the comment to that annon that only Rodan is related to nuclear radiation... which is not correct.

[@Matixxx972]

@OffBrandAnon Yes, Mothra too. At least in The monsterverse. Original Toho Mothra does not go by radiation tho... By being technically a goddess, there's no need for that.

[@SilunaKingKaiju]

How to trigger Godzilla fans 101 0:46 “Gheedoora” G fans: TRIGGERED 9000

[@HuntertheWraithDragon]

I'm a fan, have been one since 1996. And this doesn't bother me.

[@remnantryku7112]

My friend asked me: “Why do you watch this stuff?” My answer: “Because science.”

[@gregsain7730]

Thanks for the nightmare fuel, Three-headed Kyle-dorah!

[@ashenwuss1651]

*~slurping tongue noises~* I'm a monster

[@a.m.1409]

Their hearts would be absolutely massive as well for the wing tissue to not just die and fall off. There are also some biological limits on that.

[@genkidamatrunks6759]

Hm, multiple hearts per creature? Give Ghidorah 2 or 3 hearts. That should help tremendously.

[@lilypads3033]

@@genkidamatrunks6759 octopi have 3 hearts, I think ? If I remember correctly

[@NotHPotter]

To say nothing of the issues of coordinating muscles that far apart. I don't know the exact speed of nerve impulse off the top of my head, but I'm certain traveling a kilometer to reach the length of the wings would create noticeable lag.

[@Waelly17]

@@NotHPotter multiple mini nerve clumps like how cockroaches have (i think) evenly distributed "brains" in their body, or like how a nerve clump in out elbow pulls our hand back to mitigate burning surfaces' damage, and like octopuses (its not octopi btw) have (something like) independent tentacles

[@AlucardHellsing-ct4ej]

That's true but we also got to see their power sources becuase Godzilla runs on radiation ghidorah on something else and rodan has a pyro reactor in his chest I dont k how enough about mothra to say anything though

[@gavmandragon8443]

Well, ghidora bleeds lightning and Rodan is constantly on fire so they're sure doing something that generates a lot of energy.

[@tentenwolfgirl]

Gavmandragon the constantly on fire thing could be theorized that Rhoda has sacks of helium or other gas that ignites fire and is lighter than oxygen and helps float

[@bournelucid]

7:58...some fine acting there He really does look confused and scared

[@angelemmanuelperezmuniz1474]

My biggest concern was the power and energy required for those monsters to fly. It was successfully adressed.

[@extragirth64]

Nuclear powah!

[@purpleemerald5299]

extragirth64 Yeah, literally. It takes nuclear reactions and atomic energy to fuel Godzilla, so I can only imagine the world ending energy contained within his flying titan brethren. O_O

[@purpleemerald5299]

Angel Emmanuel Perez Muniz For all we know, Ghidorah needs to consume entire cities to survive.

[@davindamico1759]

I agree but keep in mind, he was using the numbers they gave out in the descriptions of each monster. How do they figure that they are legitimately near the realistic figures? Research time!

[@tonuahmed4227]

Can anyone explain me how nuclear reaction give kaijus/titans energy...how their nuclear biology works?

[@chiloutdude5130]

I'm curious how these equations relate to the dragons in Game of Thrones. I get that the maximum weight thing still makes it unrealistic that Drogon and the others could actually fly, but if their wings aren't big enough, I kind of want to see how big they should be. Edit - I am now watching the footnotes video and see that you address this there. Awesome.

[@captainahab2518]

"i say,make the monsters bigger and then let them fight" 😂😂😂😂😂

[@HuntertheWraithDragon]

Say goodbye to the planet.

[@jdip8291]

With wing span that large, I have 2 questions. 1) Is it physically possible for a wing to beat fast enough to provide the lift? 2) What would the force of the air being pushed down do to the area below the wings? complete devastation?

[@riot2136]

J DiP part of Rodans lore is that he creates sonic booms and wind that flatten cities when he flies over, you can even see it in older movies. A nickname is the Flying Atomic Bomb. In this movie ghidorahs wing cause such a large disturbance that whenever he flies, he is surrounded by mini storms.

[@lilchristuten7568]

He said biologically that it isn't possible for wings of that size to produce enough energy to get gidorah flying, that is because there is a maximum speed at which something like a wing can move through the atmosphere. Everything has a terminal velocity moving through the air. He also said that it would take the same amount of power to flap his wings as it would take for a space shuttle to get into space (a 62 mile journey in approximately 150 seconds) but it would happen in about 4 seconds and in the span of a few 10s of meters so it would cause hurricane level winds.

[@CalebJMartin]

J DiP An interesting question; the wing could only ever transfer kinetic energy down its length at the speed of sound through whatever material it’s made out of. He mentioned that it would take multiple minutes to hear a roar from Godzilla across Ghidorah’s augmented wingspan. While sound travels faster through solid material, I’d say it’s not a stretch to assume it would take at _least_ several seconds for a force acting on the base of the wing to transfer to the tip. In other words, it would be several seconds after the shoulder moved down for the wingtip to even start moving that way. When you factor in that he mentioned Ghidorah might need to flap once every four seconds, it doesn’t seem very plausible.

[@_Charlatan]

Always loved Godzilla since I was little. This video made me very happy. Thanks for the hard work.

[@Deku-bt8cl]

Just binged almost all your videos. 😅 The science is awesome, and your animations are stellar. Thank you for making these for us! 😊

[@kevinbaez9944]

Actually King Ghidorah is from space so... xD

[@TheWhite2086]

What if instead of assuming that the given weights are correct we assume that the given wingspans are correct? If we take the monster's wingspans could we work out what weight they would need to be for those wings to work? I assume that they would still be in the category of "too heavy to fly" but it would be interesting to see anyway.

[@Shardalon]

That's actually really interesting.

[@simplefolk8991]

They'd probably be 1/8th or 1/10th of the given weights. Not as seemingly impressive but still would be the weight of destroyers and light battleships.

[@zackbulatao]

They could be lighter but tougher. Like comparing steel plates to Kevlar... They may be huge but their actual density and mass could be a lot different...

[@Dracarot]

So what your saying is *attempts Rita Repulsa voice* "MAGIC WAND! MAKE MY MONSTER GROW!!!!!"

[@johnnyblaze543]

Thanks for the nostalgia

[@Golden12500]

"They would need otherworldly strength to fly!" *Ghidorah is an alien*

[@three-b4212]

Love this channel! You all do a great job getting people, and particularly young people interested in science, which is not only necessary, but important to the progression of society, even if they/we don't become scientists. Thanks!

[@jackielinde7568]

Kyle, what if we played with the monsters' mass instead of wing span? Would making them lighter, but keeping the same physical dimensions (including wingspan) get into the realm of possible?

[@irvs5922]

They are just too big. A being like that could never be possible. The biggest animal ever (counting size and mass) is the blue whale, and it has to be in water to survive. Flying beings are normally very small or very fragile. And it wouldn’t get to the size of those monsters. The biggest flying animal ever was the quetzalcoatlus.

[@moukidelmar]

In reality, a kaiju the size of Ghidora would weigh about 650 tons or, comparatively, the weight of a battle ship. Even if you gave him hollow bones like birds and dinosaurs he would still crush himself under his own weight

[@jackielinde7568]

@@irvs5922 Maybe not. The Soviet cargo plane Antonov An-225 has a wingspan of 88.4 meters, length of 84 meters, an empty weight of 314 tons, and a max takeoff weight of 705 tons. While that's not a biological flying machine, it does prove that something the size of those monsters could possibly fly. And birds are known for being very light compared to the volume of space their bodies take up. So, if we scaled the monsters' weight down, it might fall into that range of "plausible impossible".

[@ruyman90]

Not really, he didn't mentioned in the video but there aren't any material know by us that could stand the incredible forces their wings would be subjected to. Even if their wings were made of tungsten with that length they would rip trying to move something that heavy that fast.

[@irvs5922]

Jack Linde to make those beings as large as they are and with flight they would need to be so light that they would break just from the wind. Nature is wise. It knows it’s shit. If things like that don’t exist is because they can’t exist or because it wasn’t efficient and they died.

[@OptimusPhillip]

12 GW? That's ten times the power needed to travel through time!

[@saphcal]

dont confuse Gigawatts with Jigawatts ;)

[@OptimusPhillip]

@@saphcal They're the same thing

[@justanotherhunter6634]

Ghidorah is from space Ghidorah has lifted godzilla miles into the air Ghidorah is literally a space monster Ghidorah is not an earth monster Now say it with me👏👏👏👏👏

[@aaronlaluzerne6639]

You know that a Bumble Bee's wings are too small when compared to its body and yet they're still able to fly right?

[@ProfAzimov]

They are very inefficient, but sure

[@justsomejerseydevilwithint4606]

Hold on. What if Ghidora, mothra, and Rhodan were Nuke-powered? In the last Godzilla movie, released before kong but set in modern day, where the organization 'project monarch' still exists( linking the movie mythos/explanations), the researcher guy established that these titanic creatures were made possible by absorbing massive amounts of atomic radiation, and that most of them needed this constant radiation to survive actively, i.e. move around normally. Would it be at all feasible for such creatures to sort of supercharge their muscles with some form of nuclear reactor power? Like boiling water in their stomachs with massive amounts of radiation and pumping steam through artery-like tubes in their muscles? What if the monsters of Godzilla developed nuclear power hundreds of millions of years before we did?

[@NotHPotter]

You make a convincing point, but they're still largely just constrained by the physics on their large size and Earth's gravity. As noted at the end, even at incredible efficiency, the ability to function based on what we know of physics just makes it infeasible. When you consider how fast a kilometer and a half wing would have to swing at even .2 hertz, structurally it would tear itself apart.

[@SpinningTurtle66]

I thought the nukes just woke them up and they use it for certain powers, not to harness and get stronger.

[@NotHPotter]

@@SpinningTurtle66 It's mentioned in the 2014 reboot that they lived long ago when ambient radiation levels were higher, and they used that to survive. In the modern incarnation, the nukes woke them from a dormant state because they were finally able to absorb enough energy to thrive again.

[@SpinningTurtle66]

Michael Wade Ah. Gotcha. Then I guess the answer to your question is yes!

[@dukedevlan5457]

So basically there bodies are natural nuclear reactors

[@wahbegan]

"Unless I don't know they're....from space or something" Oh man, Kyle, you're absolutely gonna shit when I tell you where King Ghidorah's from

[@ellisbud222]

Minnesota. I know, I was shocked too.

[@SoulRacer65]

@@ellisbud222 wait king Ghidorah is from Mn, thats where i live

[@becausescience]

I saw the new movie ~ a month ago? Just trying to be cheeky -- kH

[@wahbegan]

@@becausescience I want to say oh don't worry I'm just being cheeky too but mainly I'm just flabbergasted that senpai noticed me

[@wahbegan]

WAIT KYLE IF YOU'RE READING THIS HAVE YOU SEEN SHIN GODZILLA AND WOULD HIS PURPLE LASER BEAMS JUST KEEP GOING STRAIGHT UP INTO THE ATMOSPHERE FOREVER WHEN WOULD THEY END THIS HAS ALWAYS BOTHERED ME ONLY YOU CAN HELP

[@KingofTheGojiras]

10:59 As a LOOOOOOOng time Godzilla fan I can say there are many continuities that change Godzilla's size and over all power to equate for something such as this. I think on Mothera this would look really cool and actually put her at a fair fight against godzilla.

[@duffman2625]

Hi, Kyle! So I've been thinking a lot about how you write over the week that I've known your channel, and I need to know the answers: 1. How are you actually writing and drawing with your markers? Are they some sort of magic markers that just allow you to write in the air? Is there a glass in the emotionless void placed between you and the "camera" that lets us see you? Do you write directly to our screens through a technological communication in binary from the markers to my device? 2. I notice you never erase any of your writing/drawings. Is it because you can't? If not, where do they go? I notice some of your drawings move through the void. Is that how you clear it? Just wait for them to move on their own (or move some inanimate objects)? 3. Whenever you write in a way I can see, you seem to be writing backwards from your own point of view. Are you just really well trained in writing backwards? If so, you are left handed. Since only about 1 in 10 people are left-handed, I would like to consider other possibilities. Is the void simply projecting to me a mirrored image of what you truly are? Is there a mirror on the other side of the "camera" (out of view) that you look at when you write to make sure you're doing what you think you're doing? Please answer these potentially unanswerable questions to the best of your ability. I'd really love that, thanks!

[@kodyjayvin]

Plus, one thing you didn't cover, is even if they were powerful enough to fly, it would push so much air out of the way that they'd have a very noticeable impact on the weather wherever they went, practically creating small tropical storms no matter where they were.

[@stefansavvanis1122]

They do in the movie

[@solitaregames]

Hello~ Ghidorah is always followed by a super storm. And Rodan destroyed an entire city flying over it by wind force alone.

[@dhvsheabdh]

Ghidora's storm following him clearly isn't a consequence of flapping since it follows him as he walks around.

[@solitaregames]

@@dhvsheabdh its created from his electromagnetic pulses and yes also wind flap since when he wakes up for the first time, there was no storm.

[@twil004]

I wonder how much damage it would do just flapping those wings.

[@firstlast-ey4ly]

@@ChineduOpara Funnily enough Ghidorah does create a hurricane when flying, and Rodan knocks over buildings by just flying over them. So it's the same effect regardless.

[@TheGamingBurger734]

Rodan: WIND POWER

[@sagarshrestha2361]

@@ChineduOpara Whoopsie

[@MeowAnimations]

Watch mothra (1961) A lot of damage

[@NeilsonBuntowa]

@@firstlast-ey4ly mothra cleared the sky when she arrive

[@edenbrunell2977]

The other thing to keep in mind is the fuel. Imagine how many calories they’d have to consume to maintain that power output

[@a_blitz]

They dont eat meat and such they feed of atomic energy.

[@predalien34]

They're all just living nukes think they're good

[@solitaregames]

Nuclear monsters dood, they do not need food consumption.

[@Harbinger-lx6rt]

Well now I want to see a science video on the nutritional information of a nuclear bomb.

[@Harbinger-lx6rt]

It has 800,000 times the daily recommendation of death!

[@jonalbert8587]

To be honest i love how u explain everything in easy to understand

[@deathsyth8888]

7:27 "12 Gigawatts for Ghidorah? That's almost 10 time travel trips! This is heavy..." - Marty McFly

[@LightningEagle14]

deathsyth8888 ONE POINT TWENTY ONE GIGAWATTS?!?

[@JasonWW2000]

I don't think they were using Gigawatts in the movie. I think it was a made up Jigawatt.

[@barrybend7189]

@@JasonWW2000 no its Gigawatts. But doc Brown's pronunciation is actually correct.

[@Kayrol1990]

When I see the word "big enough", I would go: AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH-

[@numa_kai]

you beat me to it! xD I was about to say the same thing

[@danp1471]

Nice touch with answering the random questions of the drawings. I just came across your channel & will probably check out some more videos. Since I'm new to the channel i'd love to hear what videos of his anyone thinks were the best or what ones I should start with.

[@ishthefish1st]

I fear no man but that thing: 9:45 that scares me

[@dru4670]

It petrified me. That is unholy for a luck of a better word 😂😭

[@kalajel]

Kyle: "How do things fly?" Me: "Like this..." ** proceeds to flap my arms. **

[@someguy9046]

Except bats... They fly by the power of jazz hands

[@kyote1r77]

while flapping arms You gotta yell : "WOOP WOOP WOOP WOOP WOOOOPP"

[@Meteo_sauce]

Nonsense. Godzilla using his atomic breath as a jetpack is the true way to fly

[@GrahamCStrouse]

GODᴇᴘɪᴄᴇʟʟ真神 I remember that movie! :-)

[@scramblesthedeathdealer]

Yep.

[@HistorianTrevi]

Thanks for sharing! Amazing infos as always! On a side note, in the end, wasn't it sufficient to mention the square cube law?

[@riddick1128]

Godzilla scales pretty well for these fights actually there was an anime where he was literally the size of a mountain range

[@jaygonzalez8575]

Just got home watching it on IMAX!! And YES!! THEY ARE BIG ENOUGH!

[@gabrielbroughman9922]

@HardLight Hub that's why I don't really trust science anymore all they try to do is make reality depressing...our human brains can only process so much information that every thing has to be measured and calculated instead believe that anything is possible

[@gabrielbroughman9922]

@HardLight Hub exactly all they ever do is make reality disappointing all they ever do is compare something like a kaiju to a normal animal...

[@gabrielbroughman9922]

@HardLight Hub yeah scientist really do believe they think they know everything

[@gabrielbroughman9922]

@HardLight Hub yeah your right about that...I can name possible ways for kaiju to exist but I'll save for later

[@arturintete2461]

Gabriel Broughman ok, you don’t trust science cause you don’t find it fun... completely stupid but ok. Also, no scientist out there is comparing Kaiju to regular animals just to prove how unrealistic Godzilla is, lol. This is why it’s called *entertainment* , so don’t know where you got that idea.

[@satantalus1385]

Fun fact godzillas scaly skin was suppose to resemble some scars or burns on survivors of nuclear effects in japan after we droppd the bomby bois

[@ampPLrant]

Wow. I didn't know that one. I did know that Godzilla (or originally Gojira) really is an embodiment of the fear of nuclear war in Japan. It was a really hard time for them socially, even if you leave out the whole occupation and other total messes.

[@dru4670]

I've thought about this same exact questions thank you. Am so happy that you're doing this 😂😂😂. Very excited even before I watch.

[@Historyfan476AD]

Luckily for Ghidorah The laws of earth's nature does not apply.

[@wellreadbull3740]

Hey Kyle, looking at the amount of air that is displaced and what force acts on it, what would that flap sound like *buzzz buzzz*? And wouldn't the ensuing storm and pressure blast everybody in a certain radius into squishy bits?

[@MatterBeamTSF]

Most of the wing would be supersonic. It'll be crack-boom.

[@TheWretchedOwl]

Maybe they get their muscle strength from the same power source that Godzilla gets his atomic breath from.

[@curseofgladstone4981]

Nuclear energy.... That makes sense. I mean not that a creature could harness it but that it would provide the energy needed

[@AnishSomawar]

Kyle : Gidora is another Titan, should compare it with other creatures who live/lived on Earth. Movie : Gidora is an alien.

[@DJ-nh8jk]

3:00 That terasaur's face is amazing

[@serephineclaibourn3422]

I love waking up to new episodes. Thank you for the Good Morning education Kyle~

[@strangeanimations2518]

Its 17:30 for me lol

[@dinosauradventures173]

Would Ghidorah’s electrical properties be enough to disrupt or control magnetic fields in the Earth to counter some of the muscle/size requirements?

[@lebanemcarl68]

Muscle/Size requirements are not affected by magnetic fields...

[@GeorgieBonsoir]

@@lebanemcarl68 He means would Ghidorah be able to produce enough of an electromagnetic repelling force to overcome the problems portrayed by the size and force generation of his big boi bod. And the answer is yes... maybe, if he had enough electricity in him (which would need to be ALOT), as well as enough conductive material to act as the coil, then yes, this lad could be a big magnet.

[@romanrattler550]

Hey, did you calculate in the extra weight the wings would add as well? How much more weight would be added? And if the weight exceeds that of the pushing force per square meter, foot, inch whatever you want, would try not be able to fly at all?

[@JoanLindsey5581]

Ghidorah is depicted in the new movie to have a lot of weather powers, like hurricane winds, he can produce his own lift. Still holds true for Mothra and Rodan but small things like that I feel can be used to reasonably explain away wing size for most monsters.

[@ShadowDaPk]

You keep saying Big Enough and I keep expecting Jimmy Barnes to start screaming.

[@jerdasaurusrex557]

Bitch same

[@borisaustria4301]

Exactly

[@ninjahombrepalito1721]

Same

[@LEMMYKISGOD]

Godzilla Is The King (Not Ghidorah) Mothra Is The Queen (With Her Singing Twin Fairies) ❤️ Raymond Burr(RIP☹️) introduced me to all things GODZILLA. Thank You Sir 🤓 And I can't wait to hear GODZILLA by Blue Öyster Cult (a cover version) blasting out of those IMAX theater speakers with that roar...

[@mohammedhaidar3200]

Hey kyle When you calculated for mass and wing span of Ghidorah you used the original mass of Ghidorah, but when his wings got larger shouldn't the mass also also increase.

[@oliverebbing6637]

We need more Episodes with Kyle as a Hydra the "Kydra"!!!

[@jasonthepowerranger7457]

I recommend that you all see the movie. It's actually really fantastic

[@Harbinger-lx6rt]

I recommend that you also see the movie because it was actually extraordinarily fantastic.

[@MrSlushee22]

"I don't know where Bryan Cranston is!!" 😂😂😥😥😂😂😂😂

[@tenhirankei]

Who?

[@MrAutobot390]

@@tenhirankei Bryan Cranston. He was in the 2014 Godzilla. Also ya know, Breaking Bad? Malcolm in The Middle?

[@xxVincentVxx]

You know I'd Love to see another episode like this, but on airships from video games. A lot of the time when you play some sort of fantasy game, or even D&D, you can find airships that let you travel around. Some of them are pretty basic like an air balloon that lifts a ship and carries it around. But you can also find some that use magical crystals that make them levitate. I would Love to know how much power a "magical crystal" would have to output to even lift a big metal ship.

[@jlokison]

Something I seem to recall being mentioned in the 2014 Godzilla movie was that Titan biology being quite different than life that evolved after they went into hibernation. They mentioned a lot of heavy metals and radioactive materials being involved in their physiology, so their bone structure and musculature is very different from later earth nonmicroscopic life. Of course making their wings bigger and a thinner atmosphere now than when they originally evolved means the flyers are struggling to do so, and they are easy targets for a walking fusion beam canon like Godzilla. Once he blows a hole or two through the wings the flyers can't fly anymore and once stuck on the ground those huge wings would hinder them alot.