What would happen if every living thing on this planet farted at the same time?
The Setup: A Global FartpocalypseImagine it: ~8 billion humans, trillions of insects, billions of mammals, birds, fish, reptiles, amphibians, and even methane-spewing microbes—all synchronized in one planetary toot. This is a thought experiment in biology, atmospheric science, and sheer absurdity. Let's break down what actually happens, step by step, with rough calculations based on real data.Step 1: Quantifying the Gas VolumeFarts aren't just hot air—they're mostly nitrogen (from swallowed air), plus CO₂, hydrogen, methane (CH₄), and trace stinkers like hydrogen sulfide.
- Humans: Average person farts ~0.5–1.5 liters/day (14 times). Per fart: ~0.05–0.1 liters. 8 billion people × 0.075 L = 600 million liters of gas.
- Livestock (cows, sheep, etc.): Cows produce 200–500 L methane/day via enteric fermentation (cow "farts" are mostly burps, but we'll count gut gas). ~1.5 billion cattle × 300 L = 450 billion liters. Add pigs, sheep: another ~100 billion L.
- Wild animals: Billions of deer, elephants, termites (termite mounds release massive CH₄). Termites alone: ~10¹¹ individuals, each tiny but collective output rivals livestock. Total wildlife: conservatively 1–2 trillion liters.
- Marine life & microbes: Fish fart? Some do (e.g., herring use farts for communication). But microbes in oceans/guts/soils dominate: Global microbial CH₄ ~500 million tons/year. A "single event" spike? Negligible per organism, but scaled: trillions of liters from anaerobic bacteria.
Grand total gas volume: 3–5 trillion liters (3–5 × 10¹² L). That's like filling 1.2–2 million Olympic swimming pools. Converted to mass: Mostly inert N₂/CO₂ (1 kg/m³ at STP), but ~5–10% CH₄ means 10–50 billion kg of methane released instantly.Step 2: Immediate Local Effects
- Sound: A global "BRRRRRRT" at ~80–100 dB per fart. Overlap creates a planetary roar—like 10¹² firecrackers. Audible worldwide? No, sound dissipates, but coastal areas hear a muffled thunder. Seismic stations detect micro-vibrations from trillions of diaphragms contracting.
- Smell: Hydrogen sulfide (rotten eggs) at parts-per-billion stinks up the air. Outdoors, it disperses fast (wind dilutes in hours). Indoors/confined spaces: Eye-watering hell for days. Ocean farts? Bubbles of CH₄ rise, but no one smells underwater.
- Physical push: Gas exits at ~3–10 m/s. For a fly: negligible. For an elephant: ~1–2 Newtons of thrust—enough to nudge it sideways comically, but not fly.
No explosions—farts need 5–15% CH₄ in confined air + spark to ignite. Open planet? Poof, just dispersion.Step 3: Atmospheric & Climate Impact
- Methane bomb: CH₄ is a potent greenhouse gas (28× CO₂ over 100 years). Normal annual human/livestock CH₄: ~300 million tons. This event: 10–50 million tons in one go—equivalent to 5–15% of yearly emissions.
- Short-term: Tiny blip in atmosphere (total CH₄ ~5,000 million tons). Temperature rise? <0.001°C globally—undetectable.
- Long-term: CH₄ oxidizes to CO₂ in ~12 years. Adds to warming like skipping a year's worth of rice paddies. No "runaway greenhouse"—Earth's systems absorb it.
- Ozone & air quality: Trace gases cause minor irritation, but dilution wins. No acid rain or holes.
Step 4: Biological & Ecological Chaos
- Timing sync: Impossible in reality (diets, gut biomes vary), but hypothetically? Migratory birds mid-flight: minor turbulence. Fish schools: bubbly confusion, predators disoriented by herring "fart clouds."
- Evolutionary perk? Synchronized release could overwhelm predators (e.g., insect swarms gassing out birds). But mostly: Mass embarrassment for humans—social media explodes with #GlobalFartDay.
- Extinctions? None. Plants don't fart (no guts), but pollen might hitch a ride on gas plumes.
The Punchline: What Really Happens?The planet lets out a collective sigh (or rip). You get a brief, stinky breeze, a funny noise, and a negligible climate burp. Earth shrugs it off in days—atmosphere mixes, winds disperse, life goes on. In equation form for the methane spike:
Let ( V ) = total CH₄ volume ≈
5×10115 \times 10^{11}5 \times 10^{11}
L =
5×1085 \times 10^85 \times 10^8
m³.
Density CH₄ ≈ 0.657 kg/m³ → mass
m=3.3×108m = 3.3 \times 10^8m = 3.3 \times 10^8
kg = 330,000 tons.
Global impact factor: \Delta T \approx \frac{m \cdot GWP_{CH_4}}{M_{atm}} \ll 10^{-3}^\circC (negligible).Fun fact: Termites already "fart" more daily than this event. Nature's been pranking us forever.