Does Santa Really Exist?
There are a bit over 2000 million children in the World. But Santa only visits Christian children, which is around 15% of that number, or some 378 million.
With a World average of 3,5 children per home, the number of houses to visit would be about 108 million, if we believe there is at least one child with good behaviour per house. Santa has -due to the different time zones, and Earth rotation- some 3,5 hours to do his work, if we take for granted he travels West, which would be logical.
He visits approximately 967,7 homes per second. This means that for every Christian home with at least one child with good behaviour, Santa has about 1 milisecond to park his sled, climb the house, slide down the chimney, sort gifts, drink some champaigne or cider, climb up the same chimney, mount his sled again and head for the next house.
If there is no chimney, or it is burning with logs due to winter-time, he has to devise suitable solutions to enter the house.
If we suppose that every house he visits is located at a distance more or less 1 km. apart from each other, Santa travels with his sled at about 1000 kmts. per second, not counting the necessary bathroom stops and other necessary stops, which means more or less 3000 times the velocity of sound (Mach 3000). As a side note, we must mention that the fastest ship man has ever built (the Ulysses space probe) travels at 50 kmts. per second. Another interesting fact we can mention is that a normal and healthy reindeer can usually reach a velocity of 30 kmts. per hour.
The load of the sled is another interesting topic. If we suppose each child receives gifts for an approximate weight of 1 kg., the load of the sled will reach a weight of 500,000 tons, not counting Santa's own weight! On Earth, a sled can carry an approximate weight of 200 kg.
Even if we consider that the very special flying reindeer can deal with weights approximately 10 times their own weight, it would be impossible to move the sled if Santa does not get some 360,000 willing reindeer.
This would give the sled an accumulated weight of some 60,000 tons, which flying at 1000 kmts. per second will develop an impressive resistance to air, which in time will incredibly heat the reindeer, more or less like a meteorite when it collides with Earth's atmosphere. The two front reindeer will absorb an energy equivalent to 14,300 joules per second, or some 14,300 trillion watts.
Therefore, the two front reindeer will immediately burst into flames, as will the following reindeer. In fact, all reindeer will die inevitably burnt in less than 4,26 miliseconds, approximately at the time Santa plans to reach the fifth house.
This is, of course, only hypothetical, because if the sled accelerated from 0 to 1000 kmts. per second in just one milisecond, absolutely everyone, including Santa, would be exposed to to a G-force 17,500 times bigger than the force of gravity. A Santa weighing some 150 kg. (say 200 kg. for a US-Santa) would be stuck to the back of his sled, exercising an approximate weight of 3 million kg., which would instantly grind all his bones and convert him into a small, moist stain.
The conclusion is clear: if poor Santa ever existed, he is definitely dead now!
With a World average of 3,5 children per home, the number of houses to visit would be about 108 million, if we believe there is at least one child with good behaviour per house. Santa has -due to the different time zones, and Earth rotation- some 3,5 hours to do his work, if we take for granted he travels West, which would be logical.
He visits approximately 967,7 homes per second. This means that for every Christian home with at least one child with good behaviour, Santa has about 1 milisecond to park his sled, climb the house, slide down the chimney, sort gifts, drink some champaigne or cider, climb up the same chimney, mount his sled again and head for the next house.
If there is no chimney, or it is burning with logs due to winter-time, he has to devise suitable solutions to enter the house.
If we suppose that every house he visits is located at a distance more or less 1 km. apart from each other, Santa travels with his sled at about 1000 kmts. per second, not counting the necessary bathroom stops and other necessary stops, which means more or less 3000 times the velocity of sound (Mach 3000). As a side note, we must mention that the fastest ship man has ever built (the Ulysses space probe) travels at 50 kmts. per second. Another interesting fact we can mention is that a normal and healthy reindeer can usually reach a velocity of 30 kmts. per hour.
The load of the sled is another interesting topic. If we suppose each child receives gifts for an approximate weight of 1 kg., the load of the sled will reach a weight of 500,000 tons, not counting Santa's own weight! On Earth, a sled can carry an approximate weight of 200 kg.
Even if we consider that the very special flying reindeer can deal with weights approximately 10 times their own weight, it would be impossible to move the sled if Santa does not get some 360,000 willing reindeer.
This would give the sled an accumulated weight of some 60,000 tons, which flying at 1000 kmts. per second will develop an impressive resistance to air, which in time will incredibly heat the reindeer, more or less like a meteorite when it collides with Earth's atmosphere. The two front reindeer will absorb an energy equivalent to 14,300 joules per second, or some 14,300 trillion watts.
Therefore, the two front reindeer will immediately burst into flames, as will the following reindeer. In fact, all reindeer will die inevitably burnt in less than 4,26 miliseconds, approximately at the time Santa plans to reach the fifth house.
This is, of course, only hypothetical, because if the sled accelerated from 0 to 1000 kmts. per second in just one milisecond, absolutely everyone, including Santa, would be exposed to to a G-force 17,500 times bigger than the force of gravity. A Santa weighing some 150 kg. (say 200 kg. for a US-Santa) would be stuck to the back of his sled, exercising an approximate weight of 3 million kg., which would instantly grind all his bones and convert him into a small, moist stain.
The conclusion is clear: if poor Santa ever existed, he is definitely dead now!