@tayzonday
There should be an app that tells you what astronomical object to follow to eventually reach a destination. Like, if I follow Mars for five years, I’ll get to the grocery store ten miles away along a 1,000 mile zig-zag.
@magicswordz
They were following the reflection of light off the moon, as thousands of laser pointers were shining on it.
@axelprino
Someone needs to write an SCP about the forgotten fourth wise man endlessly walking around earth following the path of a random star in the night sky
@MrHendrix17
I love that the wise men inevitably end up in some sort of ant death spiral
@antaine1916
There's actually a really good historical candidate, but it's not what most people think. In 3-2 BC, there was a strange conjunction of Jupiter and Leo. There is some scholarly thought that the magi were part of the Jewish population that opted not to return after the end of the Babylonian exile, so they were Jews who were living "in the East" and thus interested in and invested in Jewish prophecy. Leo, the lion, was the ancient symbol of the Jewish kingdom, Judah, and Jupiter (the "king star" in most of the astrology beliefs in the cultures of the area) was seen crowning the lion three times and three times forming what looked like a scepter (you can use the same software you did here to see it). This is why they can't follow the star directly to Bethlehem. All the configuration does is point to a Jewish king being born in Judah, which is why they go to King Herod first. Herod has no idea what they're talking about, so the phenomenon couldn't be something readily obvious to the casual observer. The prophecy they look up while talking to Herod indicates that the messiah is to be born in Bethlehem, so that's why they go there after that. At one point in its movements, Jupiter goes into retrograde and appears to stop. So the "star" (which is actually a planet) "leads" them to Judah in search of a king by the symbolism of the constellation it's moving in (not because they're literally following it like a trail), and when they get to Bethlehem (because of the prophecy), Jupiter goes into retrograde and "stops" over the place.
@wallyhall
Fun fact - Bible doesn't actually specify three men! Just three gifts. Could have been a whole massive crowd! Enjoyed this - thanks Randall!
@dsdy1205
1:46 the three wise men and their magical hovercar, starring donald glover, kal penn, andy samberg, and neil patrick harris as the hovercar EDIT: This is a quote by Randall, in the original xkcd article about the Star of Bethlehem.
@albevanhanoy
"Let's be realistic" 5 seconds later "But they can still walk over water" Never change, Randall
@Hephera
1:42 actually if Jesus is descending from heaven and landing on the first bit of land he reaches it would make more sense to check the summit of mount Chimborazo. which is closer to the heavens than Everest is thanks to the bulging of the earth at the equator
@everyste
why didn't they just build a shuttle using antimatter technology to reach the star
@rexregisanimi
This may be too pedantic for a video like this but the "wise men" probably came from beyond the Eastern borders of the Roman Empire (somewhere like modern-day Iraq) not from Jerusalem. We don't know how many there were and they didn't arrive until Jesus was a toddler. They were astrologers more than astronomers and a single event (e.g. a conjunction between Venus and Jupiter) would have given them a bearing to follow. The "star" would have been a sign that they followed. They may not even have followed any bearing from an astronomical object (i.e. the star may have been a sign of an event that they already knew the location of).
@Krafanio
Nice to see a religious theme being treated with respect by a scientific channel.
@Saint_Wolf_
We entered a timeline where Randal actually makes calculations not regarding humanity ending but life continuing. This feels illegal.
@AutumnReel4444
0:50 This kinda blew my mind, well done
@irakyl
The diagrams at 1:40 are really interesting. This video also reminds me of one time I was in the grocery store and I saw three old men and they were walking
@JurassicCube
Making a gnostic gospels joke is unhinged levels of funny to me
@CalibansCreations
2:34 baby black hat 😦
@beaker_guy
I think the fact that the Hover Craft paths cross near Helsinki is particularly significant! Ilmatyynyalukseni on täynnä ankeriaita! 🐍👍🏼
@Cyancat123
I love the idea of Santa Claus coming about because the 3 (not so) wise men got lost and kept walking circles around the North Pole, and after they escape they give presents to every child they encounter, hoping one of them will be the child of god
@gwc3204