Real Life Thor's Hammer Can't Be Lifted

By the hammer of Thor! An electrical engineer made a working replica of the mighty Mjolnir using powerful magnets. In Marvel comics, only Thor and a few other "worthy" characters can lift the giant hammer. CNET reports the real-life version is a trick YouTuber Sufficiently Advanced, aka Allen Pan, was able to replicate with the electromagnet from an old microwave, a thumbprint sensor, and a few other gadgets. Sensors on the handle of Pan's Mjolnir turn on the electromagnet in its head when someone grabs the handle, making it practically un-liftable when placed on a secure metal surface. That is unless you possess Pan's thumbprint, which another sensor on the handle recognizes to turn off the magnet.

Pan took his invention to Venice Beach to try it out with unsuspecting passersby, CNET reports. In the video posted to YouTube this week, a succession of would-be Thors fail to lift the hammer, only to be upstaged by Pan. But one quick-thinking hero proved himself worthy by sliding the hammer off the metal manhole cover before ever touching the handle. Guess that makes him Captain America in this universe. Excelsior! (More engineering stories.)