Weather and Climate Quiz
Clouds, hurricanes, El Niño and the doldrums: 15 questions on the science of the skies.
Which instrument measures atmospheric pressure?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
Barometer
A barometer measures air pressure, and a falling reading usually warns of unsettled weather while a rising one signals fair skies. Evangelista Torricelli built the first mercury barometer in 1643.
Aneroid barometers use a sealed metal capsule that flexes with pressure changes, which made them small enough for ships and homes.
Which towering cloud produces thunderstorms, hail and sometimes tornadoes?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
Cumulonimbus
Cumulonimbus clouds can stretch from near the ground to over 12 km (40,000 feet), where their tops flatten into an anvil shape. Powerful updrafts inside them build the electrical charge that becomes lightning.
Nimbostratus clouds also bring rain, but as a dull gray blanket of steady drizzle rather than violent storms.
Which scale ranks hurricanes from Category 1 to Category 5?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
Saffir-Simpson scale
The Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale rates storms by sustained wind speed, with Category 5 starting at 157 mph (252 km/h). It was developed around 1970 by engineer Herbert Saffir and meteorologist Robert Simpson.
A storm needs sustained winds of at least 74 mph (119 km/h) to be called a hurricane at all.
What is a tropical cyclone called when it forms in the northwest Pacific Ocean?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
Typhoon
Hurricanes, typhoons and cyclones are the same kind of storm with different regional names: hurricane in the Atlantic and northeast Pacific, typhoon in the northwest Pacific, and cyclone in the Indian Ocean and South Pacific.
The northwest Pacific is the most active storm basin on Earth, producing roughly a third of all tropical cyclones each year.
In which layer of the atmosphere does almost all weather take place?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
Troposphere
The troposphere is the lowest layer, extending about 8 to 15 km (5 to 9 miles) up, and it holds nearly all the atmosphere's water vapor, so clouds and storms form there. Temperature falls with height until the tropopause.
Jet airliners cruise near the top of the troposphere or in the lower stratosphere, above most of the turbulent weather.
What instrument measures wind speed?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
Anemometer
A cup anemometer spins faster as the wind strengthens, and the rotation rate is converted into a speed reading. Wind direction is measured separately with a wind vane.
The strongest surface gust ever measured by an anemometer, 253 mph (408 km/h), was recorded on Barrow Island, Australia, during Cyclone Olivia in 1996.
Which climate pattern brings unusually warm water to the eastern tropical Pacific every few years?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
El Niño
El Niño occurs when the trade winds weaken and warm water pools off South America, disrupting rainfall patterns around the world. Peruvian fishermen named it for the Christ child because it tended to peak around Christmas.
La Niña is the opposite phase, with cooler than normal Pacific water, and it often brings a more active Atlantic hurricane season.
Which line of latitude, about 23.5 degrees north, marks the northern edge of the tropics?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
Tropic of Cancer
The Tropic of Cancer is the northernmost latitude where the Sun can be directly overhead, which happens at the June solstice. Its southern twin, the Tropic of Capricorn, bounds the tropics on the other side of the equator.
Because Earth's tilt slowly changes, the Tropic of Cancer is creeping south by about 15 meters (49 feet) every year.
Which thin, wispy clouds form high in the sky from ice crystals?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
Cirrus
Cirrus clouds form above about 6 km (20,000 feet), where it is so cold that they consist entirely of ice crystals. Their feathery streaks often signal that a warm front and rain are a day or so away.
The name is Latin for a curl of hair, part of the cloud naming system that Luke Howard proposed in 1802.
What does a hygrometer measure?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
Humidity
A hygrometer measures the moisture content of the air. Old designs used a human hair, which lengthens as humidity rises, while modern sensors track electrical changes in a moisture-absorbing material.
Relative humidity of 100 percent means the air holds all the water vapor it can at that temperature, so dew or fog forms.
Which scale rates tornadoes by the damage they cause?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
Enhanced Fujita scale
The Enhanced Fujita scale, adopted in the United States in 2007, assigns a rating from EF0 to EF5 by surveying damage after the storm, since direct wind measurements inside a tornado are rare. EF5 winds exceed 200 mph (322 km/h).
Tetsuya Theodore Fujita, who devised the original scale in 1971, also discovered the dangerous downbursts that can bring down aircraft.
What is the eye of a hurricane?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
The calm center of the storm
The eye is a roughly circular area of sinking air at the center, typically 30 to 65 km (20 to 40 miles) across, where winds are light and skies may even be clear. It is surrounded by the eyewall, where the fiercest winds blow.
People caught in the eye have been fooled into thinking a storm had passed, only to be hit by the opposite side of the eyewall.
What is the name for the belt of calm, light winds near the equator that once stranded sailing ships?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
The doldrums
The doldrums, known to meteorologists as the Intertropical Convergence Zone, form where the trade winds of both hemispheres meet and air rises rather than blowing sideways. Ships could sit becalmed there for weeks.
The horse latitudes, around 30 degrees north and south, are another calm zone, supposedly named for horses thrown overboard by becalmed Spanish crews.
Which gas is the most abundant greenhouse gas in Earth's atmosphere?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
Water vapor
Water vapor accounts for most of the natural greenhouse effect, but its level is set by temperature rather than by emissions. Carbon dioxide from burning fossil fuels drives the warming, and warmer air then holds more water vapor, amplifying it.
Methane traps far more heat per molecule than carbon dioxide but lasts only about a decade in the atmosphere.
Where was the highest air temperature ever officially recorded, 56.7 °C (134 °F) in 1913?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
Death Valley, California
The reading was taken at Furnace Creek in Death Valley on July 10, 1913, and the World Meteorological Organization still recognizes it as the world record. Some scientists question the 1913 measurement, but it has never been overturned.
Furnace Creek sits 58 meters (190 feet) below sea level, and the valley's shape traps hot air like a lid on a pan.
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All Science quizzes →About the Weather and Climate Quiz
Weather shapes every day of our lives, yet most of us cannot tell a cirrus from a cumulonimbus. The hottest air temperature ever officially recorded, 56.7 °C (134 °F), was measured in Death Valley in 1913, a Category 5 hurricane packs sustained winds above 157 mph, and sailing ships once sat becalmed for weeks in the doldrums near the equator.
These 15 questions cover cloud types, storms and hurricanes, the scales used to rate them, the instruments in a weather station, climate zones and the greenhouse effect. The first questions suit anyone who watches the forecast, the middle section tests real meteorology, and the final questions on El Niño, greenhouse gases and world records will challenge weather enthusiasts. Great for students and curious skywatchers.
You will find 15 multiple choice questions here, each with four options. Difficulty: Medium. Most people finish in about 6 minutes, and every answer comes with a short explanation and one extra fact worth keeping.
How to play
Read the question and pick one of the four answers. The correct answer is revealed straight away with a short explanation, then press Next question to keep going. At the end you get your score out of 15 and a full review of your round. Play again any time and the questions arrive in a fresh order. There is no timer and no account.
Good to know before you play
What topics does the weather quiz include?
Clouds, hurricanes and typhoons, tornado and hurricane rating scales, weather instruments, atmospheric layers, climate patterns such as El Niño, and greenhouse gases.
How hard is it?
Medium overall. Roughly a third of the questions are easy, half are standard geography or science class material, and a few deeper questions will stretch keen weather watchers.
Are the records in the quiz up to date?
Yes. The temperature record cited is the official World Meteorological Organization figure, and every fact was checked before publication.
Answer key: all 15 questions with explanations
- Which instrument measures atmospheric pressure?
Barometer A barometer measures air pressure, and a falling reading usually warns of unsettled weather while a rising one signals fair skies. Evangelista Torricelli built the first mercury barometer in 1643. Aneroid barometers use a sealed metal capsule that flexes with pressure changes, which made them small enough for ships and homes. - Which towering cloud produces thunderstorms, hail and sometimes tornadoes?
Cumulonimbus Cumulonimbus clouds can stretch from near the ground to over 12 km (40,000 feet), where their tops flatten into an anvil shape. Powerful updrafts inside them build the electrical charge that becomes lightning. Nimbostratus clouds also bring rain, but as a dull gray blanket of steady drizzle rather than violent storms. - Which scale ranks hurricanes from Category 1 to Category 5?
Saffir-Simpson scale The Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale rates storms by sustained wind speed, with Category 5 starting at 157 mph (252 km/h). It was developed around 1970 by engineer Herbert Saffir and meteorologist Robert Simpson. A storm needs sustained winds of at least 74 mph (119 km/h) to be called a hurricane at all. - What is a tropical cyclone called when it forms in the northwest Pacific Ocean?
Typhoon Hurricanes, typhoons and cyclones are the same kind of storm with different regional names: hurricane in the Atlantic and northeast Pacific, typhoon in the northwest Pacific, and cyclone in the Indian Ocean and South Pacific. The northwest Pacific is the most active storm basin on Earth, producing roughly a third of all tropical cyclones each year. - In which layer of the atmosphere does almost all weather take place?
Troposphere The troposphere is the lowest layer, extending about 8 to 15 km (5 to 9 miles) up, and it holds nearly all the atmosphere's water vapor, so clouds and storms form there. Temperature falls with height until the tropopause. Jet airliners cruise near the top of the troposphere or in the lower stratosphere, above most of the turbulent weather. - What instrument measures wind speed?
Anemometer A cup anemometer spins faster as the wind strengthens, and the rotation rate is converted into a speed reading. Wind direction is measured separately with a wind vane. The strongest surface gust ever measured by an anemometer, 253 mph (408 km/h), was recorded on Barrow Island, Australia, during Cyclone Olivia in 1996. - Which climate pattern brings unusually warm water to the eastern tropical Pacific every few years?
El Niño El Niño occurs when the trade winds weaken and warm water pools off South America, disrupting rainfall patterns around the world. Peruvian fishermen named it for the Christ child because it tended to peak around Christmas. La Niña is the opposite phase, with cooler than normal Pacific water, and it often brings a more active Atlantic hurricane season. - Which line of latitude, about 23.5 degrees north, marks the northern edge of the tropics?
Tropic of Cancer The Tropic of Cancer is the northernmost latitude where the Sun can be directly overhead, which happens at the June solstice. Its southern twin, the Tropic of Capricorn, bounds the tropics on the other side of the equator. Because Earth's tilt slowly changes, the Tropic of Cancer is creeping south by about 15 meters (49 feet) every year. - Which thin, wispy clouds form high in the sky from ice crystals?
Cirrus Cirrus clouds form above about 6 km (20,000 feet), where it is so cold that they consist entirely of ice crystals. Their feathery streaks often signal that a warm front and rain are a day or so away. The name is Latin for a curl of hair, part of the cloud naming system that Luke Howard proposed in 1802. - What does a hygrometer measure?
Humidity A hygrometer measures the moisture content of the air. Old designs used a human hair, which lengthens as humidity rises, while modern sensors track electrical changes in a moisture-absorbing material. Relative humidity of 100 percent means the air holds all the water vapor it can at that temperature, so dew or fog forms. - Which scale rates tornadoes by the damage they cause?
Enhanced Fujita scale The Enhanced Fujita scale, adopted in the United States in 2007, assigns a rating from EF0 to EF5 by surveying damage after the storm, since direct wind measurements inside a tornado are rare. EF5 winds exceed 200 mph (322 km/h). Tetsuya Theodore Fujita, who devised the original scale in 1971, also discovered the dangerous downbursts that can bring down aircraft. - What is the eye of a hurricane?
The calm center of the storm The eye is a roughly circular area of sinking air at the center, typically 30 to 65 km (20 to 40 miles) across, where winds are light and skies may even be clear. It is surrounded by the eyewall, where the fiercest winds blow. People caught in the eye have been fooled into thinking a storm had passed, only to be hit by the opposite side of the eyewall. - What is the name for the belt of calm, light winds near the equator that once stranded sailing ships?
The doldrums The doldrums, known to meteorologists as the Intertropical Convergence Zone, form where the trade winds of both hemispheres meet and air rises rather than blowing sideways. Ships could sit becalmed there for weeks. The horse latitudes, around 30 degrees north and south, are another calm zone, supposedly named for horses thrown overboard by becalmed Spanish crews. - Which gas is the most abundant greenhouse gas in Earth's atmosphere?
Water vapor Water vapor accounts for most of the natural greenhouse effect, but its level is set by temperature rather than by emissions. Carbon dioxide from burning fossil fuels drives the warming, and warmer air then holds more water vapor, amplifying it. Methane traps far more heat per molecule than carbon dioxide but lasts only about a decade in the atmosphere. - Where was the highest air temperature ever officially recorded, 56.7 °C (134 °F) in 1913?
Death Valley, California The reading was taken at Furnace Creek in Death Valley on July 10, 1913, and the World Meteorological Organization still recognizes it as the world record. Some scientists question the 1913 measurement, but it has never been overturned. Furnace Creek sits 58 meters (190 feet) below sea level, and the valley's shape traps hot air like a lid on a pan.
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