Quiz: Natural phenomena

Are you passionate about thunderstorms, volcanoes, hurricanes, and other natural phenomena? If so, test your knowledge by answering these 10 true-or-false questions.

True or false
1. About 60 volcanoes erupt every year around the world.

2. The clouds that cause thunderstorms are called stratocumulus clouds.

3. The aurora borealis generally occurs five to 20 miles above the Earth’s surface.

4. The terms hurricane, cyclone, and typhoon refer to the same weather phenomenon.

5. Seism is another word for earthquake.

6. Tsunami waves can be more than 33 feet high.

7. The sole way to determine if a storm is a blizzard is to record the temperature and amount of snowfall.

8. The Richter scale is used to assess the strength of tornadoes.

9. Hikers can cause avalanches.

10. Rainbows are multi-colored semi-circles.

Answers
1. True. There are about 1,500 active volcanoes around the world.
2. False. Cumulonimbus clouds cause thunderstorms.
3. False. The Northern Lights occur 65 to 185 miles above the Earth’s surface.
4. True. The preferred name for this weather event depends on various criteria, including its origin.
5. True. Earthquake specialists are called seismologists.
6. True. During a tsunami, several minutes may pass between the formation of each giant wave.
7. False. Wind strength and low visibility are also considered.
8. False. The Richter scale measures the strength of earthquakes. The Fujita scale is used for tornadoes.
9. True. A variety of weather events can cause avalanches. However, they can also be triggered by skiers, snowmobilers, and machine operators.
10. False. Rainbows are circular. However, their lower half is typically hidden by the horizon.