Do People Understand The Scale Of The Universe?

Do you really know how big the universe is? There’s a data driven way to read the news: go to https://ground.news/veritasium to get 30% off the Vantage plan and see through sensationalized reporting.

If you’re looking for a molecular modeling kit, try Snatoms – a kit I invented where the atoms snap together magnetically – https://ve42.co/SnatomsV

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A huge thank you to Dr. Ashmeet Singh for his expert feedback on this video.

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References:
Fun video by RealLifeLore about the scale of the Universe - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Iy7NzjCmUf0&pp=ygUkcmVhbCBsaWZlIGxvcmUgc2NhbGUgb2YgdGhlIHVuaXZlcnNl
Moon Facts via NASA - https://ve42.co/NASAMoon
Titan Facts via NASA - https://ve42.co/Titan
Mercury Facts via NASA - https://ve42.co/Mercury
Why Pluto is no Longer a Planet, BBC News via YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iIk29MnzZWA&pp=ygUYcGx1dG8gbm8gbG9uZ2VyIGEgcGxhbmV0
Pluto, Wikipedia - https://ve42.co/WikiPluto
Eris, Wikipedia - https://ve42.co/WikiEris
Brown, M. E., & Schaller, E. L. (2007). The mass of dwarf planet Eris. Science, 316(5831), 1585-1585. - https://ve42.co/Brown2007
Trans-Neptunian object, Wikipedia - https://ve42.co/WikiTNO
IAU 2006 General Assembly Press Release, via IAU - https://ve42.co/IAU2006
Solar System Moons via NASA - https://ve42.co/NASAMoons
Solar System Asteroids via NASA - https://ve42.co/Asteroids
Solar System, Wikipedia - https://ve42.co/WikiSolarSystem
How many stars are in the Universe via ESA - https://ve42.co/ESAStars
Catalog of Exoplanets via exoplanet - https://ve42.co/ExoplanetCatalog
Crowther, T. W., Glick, H. B., Covey, K. R., Bettigole, C., Maynard, D. S., Thomas, S. M., ... & Bradford, M. A. (2015). Mapping tree density at a global scale. Nature, 525(7568), 201-205. - https://ve42.co/Crowther2015
Galaxy, Wikipedia - https://ve42.co/WikiGalaxy
Counting Galaxies with the Hubble Space Telescope via NASA - https://ve42.co/CountingGalaxies
Conselice, C. J., Wilkinson, A., Duncan, K., & Mortlock, A. (2016). The evolution of galaxy number density at z8 and its implications. The Astrophysical Journal, 830(2), 83. - https://ve42.co/Conselice2016
Sagan, C., & Druyan, A. (2011). Pale blue dot: A vision of the human future in space. Ballantine books.

Images & Video:
Clip of Titan’s Surface, NASA via YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xn3-0a19sC8
Clips of Pluto Had it Coming, The Late Show with Stephen Colbert via YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5nqT7XrYRPc
Image of Solar System Objects - https://ve42.co/SolarSystemObjects

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Directed by Casper Mebius
Written by Casper Mebius and Derek Muller
Additional research & fact checking by Gregor Čavlović
Edited by Peter Nelson
Animated by Ivy Tello and Alondra Vitae
Filmed by Derek Muller, Raquel Nuno and Zyan Treadwell
Produced by Derek Muller, Casper Mebius and Han Evans

Additional video/photos supplied by Getty Images, StoryBlocks and by courtesy of NASA, NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center/SDO, NASA JPL, NASA/JPL-Caltech NASA GSFC, NASA HQ, NASA's Scientific Visualization Studio, NCSA, A. Kritsuk, M. Norman

Music from Epidemic Sound
Thumbnail by Peter Sheppard