Try to guess what would be the loudest sound on record for the earth we know. Those qualifications discount prehistoric events and celestial events like exploding stars. Would it be a nuclear explosion? A Who concert? The Tunguska Event? Your toddler throwing a tantrum? How about none of the above? Great Big Story reveals what experts consider to be the event that caused the loudest sound in recorded history, an eardrum-splitting 310 decibels that really did split eardrums for some folks who managed to live through it. More than 39,000 people did not.
But first they explain the decibel scale so we can get an idea of how very loud it was. Spoiler for those who can't wait for a two-minute video: you can read more about the deadly event at Wikipedia. -via Laughing Squid