Let’s Do Some Math And Have Some Fun With Reference Points
The typical height of a LEGO® minifigure is 4 centimeters or 1.57 inches. How do we get a scale from this number? Well, the average height of all the men on the planet is roughly 5’9″ or 175 centimeters (cm), so if a minifig is 4cm…
4cm/175cm = (4cm/4) / (175cm/4) = 1/43.75 or 1/44, considering women are a smidge shorter the right scale is roughly 1:45 or 1/45.
If LEGO® Minifigures Have A Scale Of 1:45, What Does This Mean?
Simply put, approximately 45 minifigures can be stacked on top of each and be the height of a person!
Can You Give Me Some Fun Perspectives On the Scale Of A LEGO® Minifigure?
Here are some cool points considering the scale:
Reaching For The Moon With LEGO® Minifigures
Did you know that the average distance from Earth to the Moon is about 238,855 miles? If we stacked LEGO® minifigures on top of each other to reach the moon, how many would it take?
A LEGO® minifigure is about 1.5 inches tall. At a 1:45 scale, that’s equivalent to a 5.625-foot-tall human.
LEGO® Math:
- To find the number of minifigures to reach the Moon, we first convert the miles to inches (238,855 miles = 1,514,489,280 inches).
- Then we divide that by 1.5 inches per minifigure: 1,514,489,2801.5=1,009,659,5201.51,514,489,280=1,009,659,520
So it would take a whopping 1.01 billion LEGO® minifigures to stack up from Earth to the Moon!
How Many Minifigures in an Elephant
The average adult elephant weighs around 12,000 pounds. Assuming the average weight of a LEGO® minifigure is about 0.32 ounces, how many would fit inside an elephant (by weight)?
LEGO® Math:
- Convert 12,000 pounds to ounces (12,000 x 16 = 192,000 ounces).
- 192,0000.32=600,0000.32192,000=600,000
You’d need 600,000 minifigures to match the weight of an adult elephant!
Racing Usain Bolt As A Minifigure
If Usain Bolt’s top speed is 27.3 mph, and a LEGO® minifigure could run at the same scale speed, how fast would it be in mph?
LEGO® Math:
To find the scale speed of a LEGO® minifigure based on Usain Bolt’s top speed of 27.3 mph, we scale it down by a factor of 1:45.
27.345=0.60674527.3=0.6067 (approximately)
So, if your LEGO® minifigure could run at this scaled-down speed, it would clock in at about 0.61 mph.
Towering Over The Eiffel Tower With LEGO® Minifigures
The Eiffel Tower is 1,083 feet tall. How many LEGO® minifigures would it take to stack up to the height of the Eiffel Tower?
LEGO® Math:
- Convert the Eiffel Tower height to inches (1,083 x 12 = 12,996 inches).
- 12,9961.5=8,6641.512,996=8,664
It would take 8,664 minifigures to equal the height of the Eiffel Tower!
Swimming The Atlantic With Minifigs
The width of the Atlantic Ocean is around 3,800 miles at its shortest distance. How many LEGO® minifigures laid end-to-end would span the Atlantic?
LEGO® Math:
- Convert 3,800 miles to inches (3,800 x 63,360 = 240,768,000 inches).
- 240,768,0001.5=160,512,0001.5240,768,000=160,512,000
You’d need an incredible 160.5 million minifigures to bridge the Atlantic Ocean!
Big Things On A Small Scale
Next time you look at a LEGO® minifigure, remember: they may be small, but in numbers, they can achieve astronomical scales! Imagine if this was all done with LEGO® Big Figs…