Chernobyl Drones, Star Wars and More Viral Videos
From drone footage of nuclear-damaged Pripyat to the first look at the newest Star Wars film, watch our countdown of this week’s buzziest videos.
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5. Chernobyl Drone Footage
The 1986 Chernobyl disaster is widely considered to be the greatest nuclear catastrophe in world history. The explosion at the nuclear plant released 400 times more radiation than the atomic bomb the United States dropped on Hiroshima, decimating the surrounding cities and landscape and taking 31 lives immediately. The long-term effects are still under study. In the time since, footage of the damaged areas has been hard to come by, but thanks to the advent of drones we can now get a wider look at a nuclear ghost town called Pripyat.
4. NHL Goal of the Season Contender
Tyler Ennis, a Canadian pro hockey player for the Buffalo Sabres, scored an amazing goal against the Montreal Canadiens the day after Thanksgiving. Picking the puck up just past the halfway line, Ennis beats two defenders and the goalie—with a kick, no less—before almost blindly backhanding the puck into the net for his seventh goal of the season. A stunning display of skill and athleticism.
3. SNL Schoolhouse Rock
SNL made headlines last Saturday night and into Monday with a hilarious take on President Obama’s decision to move ahead with an executive order to reform the immigration system rather than wait for Congress to pass a bill. Some say the decision is on shaky legal ground to be sure, but the skit actually misses the crux of the issue, instead focusing on Congressional procedure to stay with the message of the original Schoolhouse Rock! production. It’s great work nonetheless.
2. Star Wars: The Force Awakens Trailer
Even though it isn’t slated to appear in theaters until December of 2015, Star Wars fans were treated to a first look at the series’ seventh installment this week. Directed by J.J. Abrams and featuring a cast that both reprises and adds to the star-studded original. It’s an exciting development for even casual fans. And that original score that kicks in as a new-age Millennium Falcon swoops into view is sure to get you going.
1. A Turkey’s Point of View
You might love Thanksgiving, but it’s a safe bet that turkeys do not. So thought Jenny Brown, who after realizing that the birds “have nothing to be thankful for” at the end of each November, decided to open Woodstock Farm Animal Sanctuary as a place for turkeys to thrive rather than just be eaten. Turkeys with names like Lennon and Marley run around the coop with GoPros attached to them as Brown explains her mission in this charming Thanksgiving video.