Submarine patrol – longest
The longest submerged and unsupported patrol made public is 111 days (57,085 km 30,804 nautical miles) by HM Submarine Warspite (Cdr J. G. F. Cooke RN) in the South Atlantic from 25 November 1982 to 15 March 1983.
Strongest spider web
The newly-discovered species of Madagascan spider known as Darwin’s bark spider (Caerostris darwini) weaves the strongest known spider silk with a tensile strength of up to 520 MJ/m3 (megajoules per cubic metre) – twice as tough as any previously described silk.
Strongest robot arm
The strongest robot arm has a payload of 1,199 kg (2,645 lb) and belongs to the M-2000iA/1,200, an industrial robot created by Fanuc Robotics (USA) and unveiled in October 2008.
Strongest carbon nanotube
In 2008, a team led by Alan Windle at the University of Cambridge (UK) announced they had developed a method of making carbon nanotubes with a tensile strength of 9 gigapascals, corresponding to around three times stronger than Kevlar. Further refinements of this material could theoretically make it the best candidate for the construction of a space elevator for reaching space without the use of rockets.
Strongest beer ever sold
The strongest beer ever sold is “The End of History”, which was brewed by BrewDog in Fraserburgh, Scotland and has an alcohol volume of 55%. Bottles were sold for £500 (US $806) each or £700 ($1,129) when packaged in a taxidermied squirrel. The last bottles were sold in July 2010.
Streetboard – Highest ramp jump
The record for the highest ramp jump on a streetboard is 3.33 m (10 ft 11 in) and was achieved by Vianney Merinville (France) on the set of L’Été de Tous les Records in Cabourg, France on 4 August 2005.
Strangest plane
Though not the first aircraft to employ the oblique wing or “scissor” design concept, the first was the German Blohm & Voss P 202 in 1942, the jet powered NASA AD-1 was the first aircraft to successfully demonstrate the concept in a test programme of 79 flights from 1979 to 1982. Dubbed the strangest plane to ever fly, the wing would be pivoted up to 60 degrees when flying at high speed to reduce drag, thus allowing increased speed and longer range owing to reduced Continue reading →
Tallest bridge
The 2,460-m (8,070-ft) long Millau Viaduct across the Tarn Valley, France, is supported by seven concrete piers, the tallest of which measures 244.96 m (804 ft) from the ground to the road deck. The piers also supports seven 87-m-tall (285-ft) masts, so the maximum total height from the top of the masts to the deepest point in the valley is 343 m (1,125 ft). It was designed by Foster and Partners (UK) and opened to the public in December 2004. The bridge was constructed in Continue reading →
Tallest bottle sculpture
The tallest bottle sculpture is 11.90 m (39 ft 0.5 in) and was achieved by Tokiwa Fantasia Working Committee (Japan) at the Tokiwa Park, Ube, Japan, on 13 November 2011. The plastic bottle sculpture depicts a rocket called ‘Soyuz Rocket’ (Russian spacecraft) and is made using 10,829 two-litre plastic bottles. These bottles were commercially available in Japan.
Tallest bonfire
The tallest bonfire tondo measured 43.44 m (142 ft 6.2 in) high and has an overall volume of 1715.7 m³ (60, 58 ft³). It was built by ŠKD mladi Boštanj, and lit on 30 April 2007 in Boštanj, Slovenija, to celebrate Labour Day.