Beware.
After many millions of years,
the T. rex is back.
And this giant, scary predator
is setting its hungry sights on you.
During the late Cretaceous period
about 66 million years ago,
the T. rex was one of the largest known
meat-eating dinosaurs.
Its full name, Tyrannosaurus rex,
means king of the tyrant lizards.
And it certainly fits the profile.
These dinosaurs towered at up to 6 m (20 ft) tall.
With the strongest bite of any land animal that ever lived,
the T. rex was a ferocious predator.
Back in its day,
it was roaming the once lush and warm
western parts of the U.S.
But somehow it's back
and it's on the hunt for you.
Run!
Your peaceful walk in the park would take a turn
for the worse.
You'd look up and suddenly see the frightening sight of a T. rex
rising above you.
Frozen with fear,
you'd quickly take in its terrifying features.
Its powerful tail
counterbalancing a massive skull.
Its thick neck muscles.
And its muscular thighs that would be a good reminder
that you shouldn't have skipped your leg day at the gym.
Though I wouldn't advise it,
you might involuntarily chuckle at the sight
of the dinosaur’s puny, two-fingered forearms.
But your amusement wouldn't last long.
The T. rex would flash its gigantic teeth at you.
Some of those could be 30 cm (12 in) long.
As a fan of the Jurassic Park film franchise,
you might think that the best thing to do
is remain standing as still as possible.
But research suggests that
the T. rex had a sense of vision as good or better
than modern-day eagles.
Yeah, now would be a good time to run.
Another thing Jurassic Park led you to believe is that
in order to get away from this predator,
you’d need to be able to move as fast as a car.
Well, that would mean running
at a speed of 50 km/h (30 mph).
And that's impossible for humans.
Yeah, even the world's fastest person,
Usain Bolt, with his top speed of 44 km/h (27 mph), wouldn't make it out alive.
But you'd still have a chance.
Today, scientists debate whether or not
the T. rex could run at all.
Research supporting the theory that the dino could run
estimates that this predator would be able to move
at a moderate pace of about 24-40 km/h (15-25 mph).
Any faster, and it would break its legs.
On the other hand,
the T. rex might not have been able to run at all.
Instead, it would've walked
at a slower than human pace of 5 km/h (3 mph).
That's about as fast as a softshell turtle.
Knowing this, you could jog a comfortable distance from the attacking T. rex.
And if you're not a runner,
soon enough you'd stop to catch a breath.
But that would be a mistake.
Your moment of relaxation would suddenly be interrupted
by extremely sharp pain.
Yeah, another T. rex has found you
with its amazing sense of smell.
And it would sink its teeth into you.
With that sharp pain,
you'd feel your bones being crushed.
The T. rex would be using its so-called
puncture and pull strategy on you.
The dinosaur would drag its teeth right through your flesh and bones.
This would be a gruesome way to die.
Its front teeth would grip
and pull you to shreds,
while its side teeth
tear your flesh from your body.
Its back teeth would be moving your body closer and closer to the T. rex’s throat.
Struggling to break free wouldn't help you now.
Your attacker's wide teeth
wouldn't break from your wiggling.
After all, this dino used to hunt triceratops.
And to make things worse,
the dinosaur’s powerful neck muscles would thrash you around.
These muscles would be strong enough
to throw a 50 kg (110 lb) chunk of meat
about 5 m (15 ft) into the air.
Hey, sorry to be so gruesome,
but what did you think running into
a prehistoric creature like this would be like?
Maybe you’d have a better chance
against a more modern predator.
Like an anaconda.
But that’s a story for another WHAT IF.