Dragon Ball Z Data Breaks Down the Science Behind Goku’s Spirit Bomb

Dragon Ball Z has done some wild things in its time, but few things can ever match Goku’s final move against Majin Buu. It is one thing to power up the Saiyan, but fans were left stunned when Goku became a conduit for humanity’s power as he unleashed the universe’s greatest Spirit Bomb. The technique endures to this day in the franchise, and now, one report is breaking down some real-world science behind the move.

Rikao Yanagita, a popular sci-fi researcher, handled the problem recently as they penned an article all about Goku vs Majin Buu. It was there the writer, who famously wrote The Science of Attack on Titan, gave Dragon Ball a whirl. Over on Twitter, Herms98 was kind enough to summarize the research for fans overseas, and it turns out Yanagita wanted to figure out how much energy an Earthling needed to contribute to Goku’s Spirit Bomb to defeat Majin Buu.

“Yanagita says that the human body is composed primarily of oxygen, carbon, hydrogen, and nitrogen. If Majin Buu’s the same (big if), and he weighs about 100kg, then destroying him on an atomic level should require energy equivalent to burning 250,000 tons of petroleum,” Herms98 shares.

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“Here on Earth-Prime the population is about 7.8 billion these days, so if [Dragon Ball] Earth is the same (big if), we can then round up to a nice even 10 billion to account for all the Namekians and whatnot who also contribute. Again, Yanagita’s logic, not mine,” they continue. “Finally, dividing 250,000 tons of petroleum by 10 billion means an average energy contribution of 270kcal. That’s about the same amount of energy someone weighing 79kg burns up by running 3.8km. And hey, that kinda matches what Vegeta says!”

As you can see, Yanagita ends up with 270 kcal. This is how much energy an Earthling burned when they shared their energy with Goku to fuel his Spirit Bomb. This energy multiplied in mass is what allowed the Saiyan to obliterate Majin Buu. So if you want to imagine how wiped you’d be after such an assist, you can hit the treadmill and relish the burn as you work out 270 kcal at the gym.

What do you make of this science breakdown? Did you expect it would take more energy to help out Goku or…? Share your thoughts with us in the comments section below or hit me up on Twitter @MeganPetersCB.