this week, Godzilla X Kong: The New Empire burst into theaters. In the film, Godzilla and King Kong must unite against a new threat to save the world. But if these two creatures really do exist, their greatest common enemy may be physics. Journalist Tom WardA story explains why wired.
In the films, King Kong is known to be over 100 meters (330 ft) tall and weigh around 158 tonnes. Godzilla is supposedly even bigger: 120 meters (390 ft) tall and 164 tons. But these monsters will only stumble across the movie screen. Animals that grow up will be too heavy to stand. The truly largest animal on Earth, the blue whale, has the advantage of buoyancy to support its body. But even the largest blue whales grow to about 30 meters (100 feet) long and up to 150 metric tons.
Compared to King Kong, the actual largest monkey to walk the earth was a Peepsik. that primitive, Gigantopithecus blacki, roamed what is now China millions of years ago. It resembles a 3-meter-tall (10-foot-tall) orangutan. Meanwhile, the largest Godzilla-like creatures on land were dinosaurs. The largest of these were the long-necked sauropods, which were up to 40 meters (120 ft) long and about 75 metric tons.
Still, if Godzilla or King Kong could exist, each would bring some pretty neat adaptations to the fight. Kiersten Formoso Explore this in a story for the conversation. Formoso is a functional physiologist. This type of scientist studies how animals’ skeletons and tissues allow them to move. King Kong would probably have a great arm for throwing, he says. His powerful jaws will have a super strong bite, too.
Godzilla, meanwhile, can use his tail as a whip like some modern lizards. The giant reptile’s scaly skin and sharp spikes would also provide good defense, Formoso said. Godzilla’s nuclear breath is another question. No known reptile can do that. But perhaps it would be possible if Godzilla maintained a healthy diet of radioactive rock or meat.
Want to know more? We have some stories to get you started:
Where does Godzilla get his atomic breath?Some of the mysteries of Kaiju’s nuclear breath can be explained through creative applications of physics and biology. (10/16/2023) Readability: 7.9
Monstrous mammals will break the rules of the bodyGiant mammals and humans thunder through our movies and books. But real mammals can only get so big before they can’t take the heat. (5/17/2022) Readability: 6.3
Have you seen Bigfoot or the Loch Ness Monster? probably notFlo Foxon is a data scientist by day. In his spare time, he applies his skills to astronomy, cryptology and the sight of mythical creatures. (2/12/2014)
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The truly largest animal walking the land today is the African elephant. Want to see them in action? Check out the live camera from auckland or San Diego Zoo – Or This feed is from Tembe Elephant Park In South Africa!
