SortStack #92 — 2026-09-09

By speed · Order from slowest to fastest.

1. The growth of a cave stalactite 0.1 mm/year

   Most stalactites lengthen by less than a tenth of a millimetre a year, dripping mineral by mineral over millennia.

2. A powerful soccer free kick 132 km/h

   A well-struck free kick can swerve in mid-air as spin and airflow bend its path around a defensive wall.

3. A record fastball pitch 169 km/h

   A 100-mile-an-hour pitch reaches home plate in under four-tenths of a second, faster than a blink of choice.

4. A bullet train at full speed 330 km/h

   Japan's bullet trains have a near-perfect safety record, with average delays measured in seconds, not minutes.

5. A tsunami across the open ocean 800 km/h

   In deep water a tsunami is barely a ripple, racing as fast as a jet before rearing up near the shore.

6. The land-speed record car 1.2K km/h

   ThrustSSC became the first car to break the sound barrier, its twin jet engines kicking up a desert dust storm.

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