Titanoboa was one huge prehistoric snake

It's no secret that a lot of us are afraid of snakes. Some of that fear is legitimate — after all, poisonous snakes are deadly animals. But even a harmless garter snake can make some people dash for the exit. If you're one of those people, look on the bright side: the Titanoboa is safely extinct.

But if you are a snake lover with a taste for the fantastic, then an exhibit on display at the Monte L. Bean Life Science Museum at Brigham Young University in Utah will be just your speed. It features a life-like Titanoboa model...in the middle of swallowing a prehistoric crocodile no less!

Longer than a school bus

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Even a full-grown green anaconda — the world's largest and heaviest living snake — is a pipsqueak compared to Titanoboa. (Getty Embed)

So just how much bigger than modern snakes was Titanoboa? After all, if you're going to give an animal a name that mean "titanic snake," it better be pretty huge.

Well, the green anaconda is currently considered the world's largest snake. It is confirmed to reach measurements of 5.21 metres (17.1 feet). There are unconfirmed reports of it reaching lengths of 8.8 metres (29 feet). That's a big snake, for sure...but it's still not Titanoboa-sized.

That prehistoric menace was an incredible 14.6 metres (48 feet). That's almost three times the size of your average green anaconda and longer than a school bus. Like anacondas, the Titanoboa also used its massive size and strength to overpower and crush its victims. After overcoming prey (like a massive crocodile ancestor), the Titanoboa would continue on to eating the victim whole. Yikes!

A Titanic tour

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"Nice snake. Niiiiice snake." (Getty Embed)

Titanoboa: Monster Snake is currently on tour across the United States as a travelling exhibit from the Smithsonian in Washington, D.C. It next goes to the Eons Exhibit in New Jersey in April. Just so you know where to go see it for yourself...or where to stay away from!

Watch a trailer for Smithsonian documentary about their Titanoboa display if you dare!