Myth-busters discover what actually happens when you hit someone with a coin from a skyscraper

Two myth-busters have revealed how dangerous it really is to drop a penny from a skyscraper.

Among the many other things I was told not to do as a kid, dropping anything off the side of a bus or tall building was one of the warnings which made my fingers itch in temptation whenever I got close to the edge of a building.

But can a dropped coin really kill someone if pinged off the edge of a building such as the Eiffel Tower, Big Ben or Empire State Building?

Fear not, because YouTube appears to have got to the bottom of it.

YouTuber Veritasium teamed up with 'original MythBuster' Adam Savage to figure out whether throwing a penny from a skyscraper actually has the capacity to kill someone.

Having visited the Empire State building and seen mounds of pennies on the ledges below the observation deck, Savage wanted to figure out if people are right to disregard the rumour of pennies being deadly when dropped from such a height, or if by flipping one off the top of the building, you are actually risking a life.

And what better way to find out than putting yourself in the line of fire to test the validity of the theory?

Veritasium/ YouTube

According to the myth-busters, a typical coin weighs around 2.5 grams 'which is half to a quarter of the weight of a bullet' (5-10 grams).

"If you ignore air resistance, a penny dropped from the Empire State building, which is 443 metres to the very top, would accelerate to over 300km/h by the time it hits the ground.

"That's around half as fast as a typical bullet," Veritasium explains.

Lucky-photographer/ Alamy Stock Photo

Sending Savage up in a helicopter to reach the height required, Veritasium decided to be the one to stay on the ground and get rained upon by coins.

Thankfully, he was allowed to wear a hard hat and a pair of goggles.

While most of us would be overjoyed if money started raining on us from the sky, Veritasium admitted he ended up getting nervous upon walking out underneath the helicopter, realizing the pair hadn't quite anticipated the 'huge downdraft' caused by the helicopter's wings and subsequently how fast and hard the coins may hit him.

"They feel like tiny little bullets. I feel like I'm going to be bruised after this," he said.

Veritasium/ YouTube

The duo then decided to chuck the whole rest of the bucket of coins down, with Veritasium lying on the ground, his whole body pretty much unprotected and as exposed as it could be. Cue some Top Gun: Maverick style music.

As if he'd just been for a quick paint-balling session with his friends, overall, Veritasium noted the coins 'hurt a little' but 'not a lot'.

"It certainly wasn't fatal," he resolved.

Despite this, it's still one you shouldn't ever try at home or the next time you're visiting a skyscraper, so make sure you leave it to the professionals.

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