If a flying saucer zipped between New York and Tokyo at Mach 20, how long would the trip take? This playful calculator uses real geography (the great-circle route) and imaginary craft to compare with an ordinary airliner.
How to use the UFO Travel Calculator
- Origin
- Destination
- Craft
This is a just-for-fun calculator; the craft are fictional. Everything is calculated in your browser.
How it works
Choose the origin and destination cities and the type of craft.
Inputs explained
| Field | What to enter |
|---|---|
| Origin | Choose one: New York, London, Paris, Tokyo … |
| Destination | Choose one: New York, London, Paris, Tokyo … |
| Craft | Choose one: Classic flying saucer (Mach 5), Cigar-shaped craft (Mach 20), Tic-tac (Mach 60), Mothership (1% of light speed) … |
What each result means
- Great-circle distance = 2×6371000×asin(sqrt(sin(([p2] – [p1])÷2)^2 + cos([p1])×cos([p2])×sin(([l2] – [l1])÷2)^2))
- Travel time = [Great-circle distance]÷[Craft]÷3600
- Airliner (900 km/h) for comparison = [Great-circle distance]÷250÷3600
Formula
Haversine: d = 2R·asin(√(sin²(Δφ/2) + cos φ₁·cos φ₂·sin²(Δλ/2))), t = d/v
Worked example
Inputs — Origin: New York; Destination: Tokyo; Craft: Cigar-shaped craft (Mach 20).
Results — Great-circle distance = 10,851.73285 km; Travel time = 0 h 26 min; Airliner (900 km/h) for comparison = 12 h 3 min.
Key terms
- Great circle
- Shortest path between two points on a sphere.
Frequently asked questions
Are UFOs real?
Unidentified flying objects exist in the sense of unexplained sightings – there's no evidence of alien craft.
Why use the great-circle distance?
It is the shortest path over the Earth's surface.
Could anything fly at Mach 20 in the air?
Air friction would heat it enormously; re-entering spacecraft experience this.
How accurate are the distances?
Within about 0.5% (spherical Earth model).