Mariana Trench
The deepest oceanic trench, in the western Pacific east of the Mariana Islands.
At a glance
| Source | Author | Role | In one line |
|---|---|---|---|
| What if you dropped a bowling ball in the Mariana Trench? | xkcd’s What If? | subject | How long a bowling ball takes to sink 11 km, and why lighter ones never arrive. |
What if you dropped a bowling ball in the Mariana Trench? — xkcd’s What If? (2026)
Source: Original · Readwise highlight
The Mariana Trench is 11 km deep, so the ball will take about 2 hours and 20 minutes to reach the bottom.
- Role: subject
- In the article: A heavy bowling ball sinks at about 1.3 m/s and needs roughly two hours twenty to fall the trench’s 11 km; lighter balls float, drift for years and may end up near California and in the Great Pacific Garbage Patch.
- Why it matters: The trench’s depth is the whole premise; nowhere else gives the question its scale.