# Things That Are Much Bigger Than You Always Thought **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [August 25, 2018, 4:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-that-are-much-bigger-than-you-always-thought/820241 "2018-08-25T04:36:24Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![wonky](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wonky/32/393_2.png) [@wonky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wonky)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2018, 4:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-that-are-much-bigger-than-you-always-thought/820241/21 "2018-08-25T16:27:38Z")
> [@BlueInfinity](#): > > On a recent crosscountry trip I passed a number of trucks carrying windmill blades. _Individual windmill blades._[A little research](https://www.wind-watch.org/faq-size.php) says that they can be 150 feet long. [Each one needed its own truck](https://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.history.alberta.ca%2Fenergyheritage%2Fimages%2Fcontent%2Fenergy%2FWind_turbine_blade_in_transport_southern_Idaho%255B1%255D.jpg&imgrefurl=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.history.alberta.ca%2Fenergyheritage%2Fenergy%2Fwind-power%2Fmodern-wind-power%2Fmodern-turbines-how-they-work.aspx&docid=jL_kB1aSNxIIOM&tbnid=ICc5oV5lGk1crM%3A&vet=10ahUKEwj7guqTzYjdAhVL0YMKHbHrDScQMwhoKBMwEw..i&w=940&h=653&client=firefox-b-1&bih=848&biw=1280&q=windmill%20blade%20transport&ved=0ahUKEwj7guqTzYjdAhVL0YMKHbHrDScQMwhoKBMwEw&iact=mrc&uact=8)and [escort vehicles before and after it.](https://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http%3A%2F%2Fkfyo.com%2Ffiles%2F2014%2F11%2FWetzelBlade-630x389.jpg%3Fw%3D980%26q%3D75&imgrefurl=http%3A%2F%2Fkfyo.com%2Frevolutionary-wind-turbine-blade-from-texas-startup-company%2F&docid=Fb4qbk8M8PGBLM&tbnid=0kfKQeOa4j4YoM%3A&vet=12ahUKEwjt2IukzYjdAhWFw4MKHfXADXY4ZBAzKCcwJ3oECAEQKA..i&w=980&h=605&client=firefox-b-1&bih=848&biw=1280&q=windmill%20blade%20transport&ved=2ahUKEwjt2IukzYjdAhWFw4MKHfXADXY4ZBAzKCcwJ3oECAEQKA&iact=mrc&uact=8) (Stock photos just to give you an idea of the scale) I used to work in a job where we supplied some materials for windmill blade manufacture. One of the most interesting things was that the length of the blades means that when they collect dirt, the wobble from being unbalanced can really hugely cut down on the energy the can generate. So the lifespan of a blade is surprisingly short and developing surfaces that don’t collect dirt/debris is a huge drive. ---
**Author:** ![Riemann](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/riemann/32/3133_2.png) [@Riemann](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Riemann)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2018, 4:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-that-are-much-bigger-than-you-always-thought/820241/22 "2018-08-25T16:36:36Z")
In the OP’s video, I was a bit mystified by the map of the U.S. superimposed on the Moon. They are a similar size. Which one is supposed to be surprisingly large? ---
**Author:** ![Riemann](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/riemann/32/3133_2.png) [@Riemann](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Riemann)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2018, 4:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-that-are-much-bigger-than-you-always-thought/820241/23 "2018-08-25T16:53:20Z")
> [@Siam\_Sam](#): > > No. 16: My penis. Its hugeness often surprises me. It could be a perspective thing - that it’s small but closer to you than other penises. ---
**Author:** ![Dr.Girlfriend](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr.girlfriend/32/193_2.png) [@Dr.Girlfriend](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Girlfriend)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2018, 4:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-that-are-much-bigger-than-you-always-thought/820241/24 "2018-08-25T16:55:37Z")
> [@Joey\_P](#): > > My go to ‘you have no idea how big it is’ was in the video, the stop light. Until you see one laying on the ground, I think a lot of people if randomly asked would guess they’re about a foot or two tall, not nearly as tall as a person. They just don’t look that big up in the air. > Same goes for road signs. Even ones not that high like speed limit or stop signs are pretty big when you find yourself trying to move one. Yep. My grandmother had a planter that was made out of the cover of an old street light. Granddad used to work for the city power company. It was probably more than a foot across and almost twice as deep. ---
**Author:** ![Renee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/renee/32/287_2.png) [@Renee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Renee)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2018, 5:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-that-are-much-bigger-than-you-always-thought/820241/25 "2018-08-25T17:10:33Z")
I liked the one where they replaced the moon with Saturn. That’s cool, we should do that. Kind of gave up after that, why was this a video instead of a list of photos? ---
**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2018, 6:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-that-are-much-bigger-than-you-always-thought/820241/26 "2018-08-25T18:31:12Z")
> [@Little\_Nemo](#): > > One thing that’s the opposite is the Statue of Liberty. Same with Mt. Rushmore. Looks great in photos, but completely underwhelming when standing under it. ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2018, 7:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-that-are-much-bigger-than-you-always-thought/820241/27 "2018-08-25T19:29:37Z")
> [@Defensive\_Indifference](#): > > The eagle talon was the one that surprised me most. I knew they were big birds, but I didn’t have a sense for how big their talons were. Yikes. That’s specifically a Harpy Eagle foot. Their legs are as thick as a human wrist. They have to be that powerful to yank monkeys and sloths out of trees in flight. Golden and Bald Eagles have much smaller talons (but still impressive). I can vouch for the Leatherback Sea Turtle. I watched one lay it’s eggs one night, and it seemed the size of a Volkswagen bug. > [@Miss\_Mapp](#): > > I only, finally, went up to the top of the Eiffel Tower last year. Standing near it on the ground, you can appreciate that it’s huge. Going up (and up, and up) in the elevator, especially when the structure narrows around you and Paris recedes to a blur below, the sensation is distinctly _Ohmygod, ohmygod, ohmygod, this is really high up!_ Grown-up people whimpered. Looking out from the top of the Tower is perhaps even more impressive than the view from the Empire State building because there are no other tall buildings in Paris. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2018, 8:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-that-are-much-bigger-than-you-always-thought/820241/28 "2018-08-25T20:30:38Z")
> [@Steve\_McQwark](#): > > Anything about sizes and distances in space always amazes me. [This may help](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vh5kZ4uIUC0). 😉 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Ambivalid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/a5b964/32.png) [@Ambivalid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ambivalid)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2018, 8:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-that-are-much-bigger-than-you-always-thought/820241/29 "2018-08-25T20:31:43Z")
The Great Lakes. ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2018, 9:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-that-are-much-bigger-than-you-always-thought/820241/30 "2018-08-25T21:06:05Z")
Another animal we don’t realize the size of are domestic pigs. [A really big one can be the size of a cow.](https://i0.wp.com/exploredia.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/Big-Bill-the-Pig-2552-lbs.-Biggest-Pet-In-The-World.jpg?resize=640%2C480&ssl=1) ---
**Author:** ![Hopeful\_Crow](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/da6949/32.png) [@Hopeful\_Crow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hopeful_Crow)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2018, 9:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-that-are-much-bigger-than-you-always-thought/820241/31 "2018-08-25T21:22:54Z")
> [@mandala](#): > > Locomotives. Only when you next to one on even ground do you realize how humongous and massive they are. This. We visited the Railroad Museum in Revelstoke, B.C. and I was amazed how huge an actual steam locomotive is. They don’t look that big in the movies. ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2018, 9:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-that-are-much-bigger-than-you-always-thought/820241/32 "2018-08-25T21:33:13Z")
> [@Riemann](#): > > It could be a perspective thing - that it’s small but closer to you than other penises. Well, that’s true. In general, I have the opposite effect. Things often look smaller than I had imagined. I can’t think of anything that looked bigger than I had thought. ---
**Author:** ![pohjonen](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pohjonen/32/423_2.png) [@pohjonen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pohjonen)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2018, 10:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-that-are-much-bigger-than-you-always-thought/820241/33 "2018-08-25T22:07:27Z")
The big cats I saw at Cat Tales in Spokane. Previously, I’d only seen them from a distance at places like the San Diego Zoo. From 2 feet away just on the other side of a fence, they are truly enormous. [Here, kitty kitty.](http://www.spokesman.com/stories/2011/jan/01/roaring-back/) ---
**Author:** ![Slow\_Moving\_Vehicle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/slow_moving_vehicle/32/291_2.png) [@Slow\_Moving\_Vehicle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Slow_Moving_Vehicle)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2018, 10:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-that-are-much-bigger-than-you-always-thought/820241/34 "2018-08-25T22:19:19Z")
> [@Joey\_P](#): > > My go to ‘you have no idea how big it is’ was in the video, the stop light. Until you see one laying on the ground, I think a lot of people if randomly asked would guess they’re about a foot or two tall, not nearly as tall as a person. They just don’t look that big up in the air. > Same goes for road signs. Even ones not that high like speed limit or stop signs are pretty big when you find yourself trying to move one. Likewise, I was croggled when I recently read that the white lane dividers painted on roads and highways are each about ten feet long. They look so short when you’re zipping past 'em at 65 mph. ---
**Author:** ![msmith537](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d9b06d/32.png) [@msmith537](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/msmith537)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2018, 12:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-that-are-much-bigger-than-you-always-thought/820241/35 "2018-08-26T00:39:56Z")
I wasn’t really surprised by the cruise ship. I see them heading down the Hudson River all the time and the larger ones look like a block of 20 story office buildings cruising down river. They even dwarf the USS Intrepid when they are docked next to it. And yet, the two times I’ve been on a cruise I found it mind-numbingly boring. ---
**Author:** ![Quimby](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/22d042/32.png) [@Quimby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quimby)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2018, 4:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-that-are-much-bigger-than-you-always-thought/820241/36 "2018-08-26T04:31:14Z")
The first time I went to a baseball game as a kid I was shocked and amazed just how large the outfield is. On TV it looks like a medium size band of green but it is huge. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2018, 5:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-that-are-much-bigger-than-you-always-thought/820241/37 "2018-08-26T05:54:46Z")
> [@Quimby](#): > > The first time I went to a baseball game as a kid I was shocked and amazed just how large the outfield is. On TV it looks like a medium size band of green but it is huge. [Here’s an astonishing image.](https://cdn.theatlantic.com/static/mt/assets/science/Apollo11_baseball2.jpg) It’s a map of the entire area of the moon that was explored by the crew of Apollo 11 superimposed on a baseball diamond. ---
**Author:** ![TokyoBayer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tokyobayer/32/13989_2.png) [@TokyoBayer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TokyoBayer)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2018, 6:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-that-are-much-bigger-than-you-always-thought/820241/38 "2018-08-26T06:00:39Z")
> [@Slow\_Moving\_Vehicle](#): > > Likewise, I was croggled when I recently read that the white lane dividers painted on roads and highways are each about ten feet long. They look so short when you’re zipping past 'em at 65 mph. Sure they look short when you are zipping along, but what if you are in, say, a slow moving vehicle? ---
**Author:** ![Flyer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/flyer/32/7298_2.png) [@Flyer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Flyer)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2018, 1:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-that-are-much-bigger-than-you-always-thought/820241/39 "2018-08-26T13:33:18Z")
> [@WildBlueYonder](#): > > The windmill/wind thingies…:smack:😕 TURBINESSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS > > Holy moly those things are HUGE!! > [@BlueInfinity](#): > > On a recent crosscountry trip I passed a number of trucks carrying windmill blades. _Individual windmill blades._[A little research](https://www.wind-watch.org/faq-size.php) says that they can be 150 feet long. [Each one needed its own truck](https://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.history.alberta.ca%2Fenergyheritage%2Fimages%2Fcontent%2Fenergy%2FWind_turbine_blade_in_transport_southern_Idaho%255B1%255D.jpg&imgrefurl=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.history.alberta.ca%2Fenergyheritage%2Fenergy%2Fwind-power%2Fmodern-wind-power%2Fmodern-turbines-how-they-work.aspx&docid=jL_kB1aSNxIIOM&tbnid=ICc5oV5lGk1crM%3A&vet=10ahUKEwj7guqTzYjdAhVL0YMKHbHrDScQMwhoKBMwEw..i&w=940&h=653&client=firefox-b-1&bih=848&biw=1280&q=windmill%20blade%20transport&ved=0ahUKEwj7guqTzYjdAhVL0YMKHbHrDScQMwhoKBMwEw&iact=mrc&uact=8)and [escort vehicles before and after it.](https://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http%3A%2F%2Fkfyo.com%2Ffiles%2F2014%2F11%2FWetzelBlade-630x389.jpg%3Fw%3D980%26q%3D75&imgrefurl=http%3A%2F%2Fkfyo.com%2Frevolutionary-wind-turbine-blade-from-texas-startup-company%2F&docid=Fb4qbk8M8PGBLM&tbnid=0kfKQeOa4j4YoM%3A&vet=12ahUKEwjt2IukzYjdAhWFw4MKHfXADXY4ZBAzKCcwJ3oECAEQKA..i&w=980&h=605&client=firefox-b-1&bih=848&biw=1280&q=windmill%20blade%20transport&ved=2ahUKEwjt2IukzYjdAhWFw4MKHfXADXY4ZBAzKCcwJ3oECAEQKA&iact=mrc&uact=8) (Stock photos just to give you an idea of the scale) And the tips of the blades move WAY faster than you would think just by looking at one in action. They seem so slow. > **[The World's Biggest Wind Turbine Blades Are So Long Their Tips Spin at 180 MPH](https://gizmodo.com/the-worlds-biggest-wind-turbine-blades-are-so-long-thei-5930272)** > > For off-shore wind farms to become an economically feasible alternative energy source, each turbine needs to be big. Like, really big. That's why the latest turbine blade from Siemens is gigantic—just a hair shorter than the wingspan of an Airbus... ---
**Author:** ![Flyer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/flyer/32/7298_2.png) [@Flyer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Flyer)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2018, 1:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-that-are-much-bigger-than-you-always-thought/820241/40 "2018-08-26T13:39:55Z")
> [@Little\_Nemo](#): > > One thing that’s the opposite is the Statue of Liberty. Yes, it’s certainly big but it’s not as big as many people imagine. > > A lot of people have seen the poster from _[Escape from New York](http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_wvoLtwni0kc/RrYq8dKID3I/AAAAAAAAKZQ/771Q43Ih3Ts/s400/escape+ny.jpg)_ which features the Statue of Liberty’s head lying in a street. It makes it look like the head is as tall as a ten-story building, which would make the entire statue the size of a skyscraper. > > In reality, the statue is 111 feet tall from head to toe. The [head is big](https://www.repstatic.it/content/nazionale/img/2014/11/17/233817772-e7375928-2e0c-497d-b23f-bac765fb3461.jpg) but nowhere near as big as it’s shown in the poster. I think that virtually everybody subconsciously thinks of the statue and the pedestal together as being the statue. > [@](#): > > The Statue is 305ft. 1in. from the ground to the tip of the flame. [https://www.nps.gov/stli/planyourvisit/get-the-facts.htm](https://www.nps.gov/stli/planyourvisit/get-the-facts.htm) Anyhow, based on your figure, that’s the equivalent of an 11-story building, which is certainly a skyscraper. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-that-are-much-bigger-than-you-always-thought/820241.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-that-are-much-bigger-than-you-always-thought/820241.md?page=3)