These Random (But Satisfying) Science Facts Will Blow Your Mind All Over The Place

Rogue planets (also known as interstellar, nomad, free-floating, and orphan planets) are planets that float around in space unattached to any solar system.

The Meganeurae that buzzed around 300 million years ago were roughly the size of seagulls, with wingspans measuring up to 65 centimeters. Insects can”t normally get this large, so scientists are still figuring out how this one did.

Because of the changing distance between our planet and the Moon, the Earth”s rotation is slowing. It used to spin much faster, which caused days to be shorter. There were probably about 385 days in a year back then, with each day lasting less than 23 hours. And yes, there”s geological evidence to back that up.

The endocannabinoid system exists in the human brain, and THC targets it. This system affects things like mood and appetite, which explains a lot.

Varieties of oranges grown around the equator are actually green, even when completely ripe. But since consumers like their oranges to be orange, the fruits are exposed to ethylene gas, which is produced when fruits ripen. This breaks down chlorophyll and causes the fruit to express its orange pigment.

Spiraling winds can pick up flames as well as water, but the result of that is a burning tornado instead of a manageable geyser.

The highest cliff, called Verona Rupes, is located on Uranus” moon Miranda, and is estimated to be five to ten kilometers tall, which is about ten times the depth of the Grand Canyon. Because of Miranda”s low gravity, it would take a full 12 minutes to fall to the bottom.

In 1908, an asteroid slammed into Earth”s atmosphere over central Russia. It broke apart at 28,000 feet, but its shock wave carried the energy of about 150 Hiroshima bombs. It destroyed 800 square miles of Siberian forest.

The collective diameters of the planets in our solar system are equivalent to about 233,865 miles, which is a lot. To get to the Moon, you”d have to travel 239,200 miles, which is even more.

About 5.3 million years ago, the Mediterranean was completely cut off from the other oceans after some tectonic shifts. As a result, it began to evaporate. But when the Strait of Gibraltar opened up, the Atlantic poured into the Mediterranean basin in a cataclysmic event called the Zanclean Flood.

The sun”s atmosphere, or corona, is about 600 times hotter than the surface of the sun. We”re still trying to figure out why.

We”ve talked about this before, but animals can actually fall from the sky. The leading theory is that animals get sucked up by waterspouts and dumped elsewhere. This image shows a fish storm that took place in Singapore in 1861.

Earth follows an object named 2010 TK7 around the sun on the same orbital path. This object is known as a “trojan,” and is, to our knowledge, the only one circling alongside the Earth. It”s not a moon, because a moon would orbit the planet, not the sun.

Lake Maracaibo in Venezuela deals with lightning all the time. We don”t know why, but it seems like the air currents combined with local topography welcome a lot of thunderstorms.

This oblong dwarf planet, seen here in three views, is named Haumea, and it gets its shape because of how quickly it spins. The rapid spinning causes the actual planet to become distorted.

Male koalas have two penises, and females have three vaginas. You know, just in case.

Russia takes up 6.6 million square miles, while Pluto only takes up 6.4 million. You could basically wrap Russia around Pluto with a little land to spare.

Lobsters die from exhaustion during molting, getting eaten, or being injured. They can live to be about 70 without showing signs of aging, and can seemingly go on forever as long as those three factors don”t come into play. Lobsters might be vampires.

There”s enough power in a single bolt of lightning to toast 100,000 pieces of bread.

The waterfall at Devil”s Kettle flows into a deep hole in the rock below, but then where does it go? No one knows.

Gliese 581c was considered to be a “second Earth” for a while, but recent findings suggest that it wouldn”t be habitable by humans.

Sucralose, the main chemical in Splenda, was discovered when a scientist told his colleague to “test this chemical.” The second scientist heard “taste” rather than “test,” and the rest is history. He was also extremely lucky it was just sucralose and not something of the deadly variety.