Thanos snapped his fingers and half the Marvel universe’s population disappeared. He had completed his quest to get all of the Infinity Stones and use their power to reduce the universe’s population.
Fortunately, the Avengers forged a plan to reverse this dire situation and brought back the wiped population. This is what transpired in the MCU, but questions remain.
What if Thanos snapped twice? What if he snapped without all of the Stones? What if he snapped in real life? The answer to the first question depends on the will of Thanos, while the second and third require understanding the Infinity Stones and some science.
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Thanos’ Snap, the Infinity Stones, and the Time Heist
The Snap was the event when Thanos snapped his fingers while wearing the Infinity Gauntlet and wiped out half of the universe. This action fulfilled Thanos’s goal to restore balance (he believed) to the universe by reducing its population.
Thanos could only do the Snap after collecting all six Infinity Stones, extremely powerful “gem-like objects” that originated with the Big Bang. In combination, the Stones can be devastating.
The Infinity Stones include the Power, Space, Time, Mind, Reality, and Soul Stones. Each represents a singularity from before the universe began. Thanos tapping into their combined powers had devastating results.
That is, until the Avengers went back in time to get the Stones during the Time Heist. They retrieved the Stones from alternate timelines and then resurrected those who had been wiped out.
The Avengers still had to fight a final battle with Thanos to complete the reversal of the Snap. After the Battle of Earth, when Iron Man sacrificed himself, trillions of people were brought back.
This is the story with one snap. What would have happened with two snaps?
What if Thanos Snapped Twice?
Since Thanos wiped out half the universe with one snap, we may think intuitively that if he snapped twice, the rest would be wiped out.
Yet, one mathematical breakdown suggests that if Thanos snapped a second time, half of the remaining half of the population would be gone, which means 75% of the universe.
This post also adds that, for an individual, that equates to a 75% chance of being wiped out. That amounts to a small chance of survival.
Fans have weighed in too, with different conclusions. Some think that nothing would happen, as snapping once would have used up a lot of energy and left the Infinity Gauntlet broken.
In this case, there would be no chance to snap again. If Thanos did manage it, though, it could be up to his own will how many perish.
Others have supported this latter conclusion, posting that the Infinity Gauntlet and Stones do not determine how many people die; Thanos does.
According to this thinking, if Thanos wanted half to go away and then he snapped again with the same intention, half of the remaining half would die.
So, the mathematical breakdown is convincing. But maybe Thanos did not need to snap at all.
According to Thanos creator Jim Starlin, the Infinity Gauntlet with the Stones could have responded to Thanos’ mental command. But the appeal of the Snap held in the movies and registered with audiences.
In the end, the Snap’s results come down to the will of Thanos.
What if Thanos Snapped Without all the Stones?
Thanos ruthlessly pursued getting all of the Infinity Stones because he knew that he needed all of them to power the Infinity Gauntlet. If he was missing one, he would not have been able to transform space, time, energy, and reality.
Fans tend to support this position. Without all of the Stones, there is no Snap.
This seems to make sense because Thanos is drawing the power of each Stone together to deliver such destructive ends.
For example, the Space Stone creates bridges across space, forging portals to other parts of the universe. Hence, it is necessary to transport Thanos’ destructive energy.
The Power Stone brings much of the power to destroy. If Thanos is missing it, we do not have populations fading away.
A case could be made that maybe Thanos did not need the Soul Stone since this is the most mysterious stone and least understood of the six.
However, Thanos relied on this Stone to counteract Doctor Strange’s magic. We can conclude that it has power, especially when combined with the other Stones.
What if Thanos Snapped in Real Life?
After watching Avengers: Infinity War, some scientists wondered if the Snap was even scientifically possible.
One research group conducted several tests with sensors, rubber gloves, metal thimbles, and lotion on their fingertips. With the help of high-speed video, they determined that the Snap would not have worked with a metal glove.
It turns out that skin-to-skin friction is needed along with our bendable fingers to make the snap motion possible.
So, Thanos could not have pulled off his Snap in real life. But it still begs the question: what if he did it in real life?
The Smithsonian Magazine asked several scientists and concluded that the Mad Titan’s “reality-altering snap” would annihilate the microbes in human stomachs.
In other words, this kind of snap in real life would destroy microorganisms, not just humans and animals. Yet, the article claims that humanity would probably bounce back.
This piece also says how many insects would die out, disrupting pollination and ecosystems on a larger scale than what we face today.
This video paints a dire situation too. There are devastating implications of people dusting away, causing incredible automobile accidents and plane crashes. The latter is especially alarming since there are about 10,000 planes in the sky at any moment.
More casualties would follow from the ensuing fallout, particularly from infrastructure and ecosystem-related causes.
Thanos’ snap appears to be just as dangerous for us as in the MCU. Luckily, he would not have been able to do it in real life.
Thanos and the Snap
Thanos’ snap was destructive, and if he snapped again, it would probably take another half of the remaining half of the population away. But it depends on Thanos’ intentions.
He does appear to need all of the Infinity Stones to make the Snap work. That is why he went on his quest to begin with.
In real life, Thanos could not carry out the Snap while wearing the Infinity Gauntlet. If he did, it would have catastrophic results. We would need the help of the Avengers.
Todd Wahlstrom is a creative and analytical freelance writer and life-long Star Wars fan who has expanded into writing about the Marvel Cinematic Universe. He has written about recent shows such as The Mandalorian and Andor and classic topics like Darth Vader, the Jedi, and Boba Fett. His recent articles include the MCU’s Iron Man, Captain America, and Thor. Todd is the author of a non-fiction book, holds a Ph.D. in history, and enjoys hiking, running, and reading about science.