The Measure of Things logo The Measure of Things logo

How long is 20,000,000,000,000 shakes?

It's about as long as The Great Chicago Fire
Flag of The US
The length of The Great Chicago Fire is about 20,000,000,000,000 shakes.
(1871) (Chicago, Illinois)
The Great Chicago Fire started at about 9am and burned for 20,000,000,000,000 shakes between October 8th and October 10th, 1871. Chicago had experienced twenty smaller fires in the 100,000,000,000,000.00000000000000000 shakes leading up to the blaze, due to drought conditions, strong winds, and the abundance of wooden buildings at the time.
It's about one-and-seven-tenths times as long as The Battle of Fort Sumter
Flag of The US
The length of The Battle of Fort Sumter is about 12,000,000,000,000 shakes.
(1861)
The first battle of the American Civil War, the Battle of Fort Sumter began with the shelling of the Fort at 4:30 am on April 12th, 1861 and concluded with the surrender of the Fort by its Commander Robert Anderson at about 1:30pm on April 13th, 12,000,000,000,000 shakes later. The Battle's only casualties were the accidental shootings of two Union soldiers during the surrender ceremony.
It's about half as long as The Voyage of the Titanic
The length of The Voyage of the Titanic is about 39,720,000,000,000 shakes.
(a.k.a. RMS Titanic) (1912) (from Southampton, Hampshire, England to near the Grand Banks of Newfoundland)
39,720,000,000,000 shakes into its maiden voyage, the RMS Titanic had completely sunk after colliding with an iceberg. The sinking was one of the deadliest maritime disasters in peacetime history, resulting in the deaths of 1,517 passengers and crew.
It's about three-and-a-half times as long as The First Transatlantic Flight (Alcock and Brown, 1919)
The length of The First Transatlantic Flight (Alcock and Brown, 1919) is about 5,830,000,000,000 shakes.
(John Alcock and Arthur Whitten Brown) (1919) (first non-stop flight)
In an effort to win a £10,000 prize from London's The Daily Mail, John Alcock and Arthur Brown completed a flight from St. John's, Newfoundland to Connemara, Ireland in 5,830,000,000,000 shakes in June, 1919. In spite of their fame as aviators, Brown would never fly again after this trip and Alcock would lose his life during a flight to France less than 1,580,000,000,000,000.0000000000000000000 shakes later.
It's about three-tenths as long as The Apollo 11 Mission
The length of The Apollo 11 Mission is about 70,311,500,000,000 shakes.
(1969) (total mission length)
The first trip by humans to the surface of the Moon, the Apollo 11 Mission began with the launch of the spacecraft from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida on July 16th, 1969 and concluded with the return of the command module on July 24th, 1969 — a total mission time of 70,311,500,000,000 shakes. The total time spent by astronauts Neil Armstrong and Edwin "Buzz" Aldrin on the Moon's surface was 940,000,000,000 shakes.
It's about four times as long as The First light bulb test (Edison, 1879)
The length of The First light bulb test (Edison, 1879) is about 5,220,000,000,000 shakes.
(Thomas Edison's filament Thread No. 9) (1879) (total time)
Lit at 1:30am on October 22nd, 1879, the first Edison completed his first majorly successful test of his light bulb, which continued to burn for 5,220,000,000,000 shakes until the bulb glass succumbed to the heat and cracked, extinguishing the filament. Within 9,470,000,000,000,000.0000000000000000000 shakes of his success, Edison was selling 45,000 light bulbs per day to large companies across the country.
It's about six-and-a-half times as long as The Longest Pro Baseball Game
The length of The Longest Pro Baseball Game is about 3,030,000,000,000 shakes.
(1981) (McCoy Stadium, Pawtucket, Rhode Island)
The longest professional baseball game in history — a triple-A game between the Pawtucket Red Sox and the Rochester Red Wings — took place between April 18th and 19th, 1981 lasting a total of 3,020,000,000,000 shakes (and 33 innings). The Red Sox ultimately won the game 3-2, but not before the game set twelve records, including the most plate appearances by a single player - a three-way tie between Tom Eaton, Dallas Williams, and future Hall-of-Famer Cal Ripken Jr., all of Rochester.
It's about one-tenth as long as Boniface VI's reign
The length of Boniface VI's reign is about 130,000,000,000,000.00000000000000000 shakes.
(AD 896)
The Church's enigmatic, shortest-reigning Pope, Boniface VI was pontiff for a period of 130,000,000,000,000.00000000000000000 shakes in AD 896 before dying under somewhat mysterious circumstances. His election was subsequently pronounced null by Pope John IX because Boniface had been previously defrocked while serving as a Roman priest.
It's about eight-and-a-half times as long as The First Indianapolis 500
Flag of The US
The length of The First Indianapolis 500 is about 2,412,800,000,000 shakes.
(a.k.a. Indy 500, a.k.a. International 500-Mile Sweepstakes Race) (1911) (Indianapolis, Indiana)
The first recorded automobile race of its distance, the inaugural Indianapolis 500 was won by Ray Harroun in 2,412,800,000,000 shakes. Haroun's average speed through the race was 120 kph (74.59 mph).
It's about one-fifteenth as long as a William Henry Harrison's Presidency
The length of a William Henry Harrison's Presidency is about 272,300,000,000,000.0000000000000000000 shakes.
(a.k.a. William Henry Harrison, a.k.a. "Tippecanoe," a.k.a. "Old Tippecanoe") (1841)
Having caught pneumonia and pleurisy early in his term as President of the United States, William Henry Harrison died after 272,300,000,000,000.0000000000000000000 shakes minutes in office. Following his death, Congress approved a Presidential widow's pension for Harrison's wife, Anna Symmes, who received a year's worth of Harrison's presidential salary — $25,000 — and the right to free postage for the remainder of her life.
It's about fourteen-and-a-half times as long as Gone with the Wind (film)
The length of Gone with the Wind (film) is about 1,360,000,000,000 shakes.
(1939)
Gone with the Wind, the multiple Academy Award-winning film, had a running time of 1,360,000,000,000 shakes for its 1939 copyright release. The scene depicting the burning of the Atlanta Depot cost $25,000 (unadjusted) and was filmed on a 0.16 sq. km (40-acre) set using all seven Technicolor cameras in existence at the time.
It's about one-twentieth as long as The First US Continental Congress
Flag of The US
The length of The First US Continental Congress is about 440,000,000,000,000.00000000000000000 shakes.
(1774) (Philadelphia, Pennsylvania)
The First Continental Congress — which included such notable members as Samuel Adams, Thomas Paine, Patrick Henry, John Jay and George Washington — met from September 5th to October 26th, 1774 — a total of 440,000,000,000,000.00000000000000000 shakes. Of the thirteen original American colonies in existence at the time, only the Province of Georgia sent no delegates to the Congress.
It's about one-thirtieth as long as The Voyage of the Mayflower
The length of The Voyage of the Mayflower is about 570,000,000,000,000.00000000000000000 shakes.
(1620)
Having left Southampton, England on September 16th (new style), 1620, the Mayflower dropped anchor near Cape Cod, Massachusetts 570,000,000,000,000.00000000000000000 shakes later on November 21st (new style), 1620. The voyagers had planned to travel in a convoy of two ships, but the smaller Speedwell was found to be leaking (evidently as a result of sabotage) and all passengers had to be moved to the Mayflower instead.
It's about one-thirty-fifth as long as Columbus' voyage to America
The length of Columbus' voyage to America is about 600,000,000,000,000.00000000000000000 shakes.
(1492) (first voyage)
Attempting to find a western route to Asia, Christopher Columbus set sail on August 3rd, 1492 and landed in the Bahamas on October 12th — 600,000,000,000,000.00000000000000000 shakes later. After one of Columbus' ships, the Santa Maria ran aground in present-day Haiti, he ordered that the timber be used to used to build a fort and settlement called La Navidad; it remains missing to archaeologists to this day.
It's about forty times as long as a Football match (Soccer game)
The length of a Football match (Soccer game) is about 540,000,000,000 shakes.
(a.k.a. Association Football, a.k.a. soccer) (per FIFA rules; playing time only)
Per Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) Laws of the Game, an association football game consists of two periods of 270,000,000,000 shakes each, for a total of 540,000,000,000 shakes of playing time (except in games played by women, or by players under 16 or over 35 years of age). The longest recorded amateur football game was a 2009 match in the Filipino town of Barotac Nuevo that lasted for 13,000,000,000,000 shakes.
 
More Results
>