Thor’s Hammer: The Science

Thor’s hammer isn’t real, unless you believe recent Swedish news that Thor’s hammer has been found in Stockholm. No, only in the hearts and minds of comic book and movie fans does it exist. But, assuming it did, would anyone be able to lift it?

thors hammer1

Legend says only the worthy can lift it, and depending on which source you read, it’s made from a dying star. If that is the case, then it would have to weigh as much as a herd of 300-billion elephants according to Neil deGrasse Tyson. If you’re wondering, the average weight of a male African bush elephant is a bit more than 12,000 pounds, so about 4.6 trillion metric tons. Watch a video by Vsauce3 which nicely explains the concept:

If we were to follow the legend that Thor’s hammer was made from metal from Asgard, it would only weighed 42.3 pounds. That is far less than 4.6 trillion metric tons.

ThorHammer4

Most likely if it was made from existing metals it would be made of carbon steel.  Die steel refers to a variety of carbon and alloy steels that are particularly well-suited to be made into tools. Their suitability comes from their distinctive hardness, resistance to abrasion, their ability to hold a cutting edge, and/or their resistance to deformation at elevated temperatures (red-hardness).

carbondiesteelforhammers

Shanghai Metal manufactures the carbon steel in hammers. Die Steel is mainly used for manufacture of cold-work dies with high abrasive resistance and small shock load. SMC is delighted to provide wide range of alloy steel to the customers; we also accept customizations according to your requirements. To find out more, please visit our websiteLinkedInTwitter, Facebook and Instagram. Or you could try our new mobile app by scanning our QR code.

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Sources: Neil deGrasse Tyson, Swedish news, Vsauce3

Siobhan R.// SMC Editor

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