Winter Wonderland Trivia Quiz

1. Which is NOT a fact about winter in the animal kingdom?
A. Some species of domesticated dog turn white in the winter.
B. Mountain goats with their luxurious 3-inch long winter coats can endure winter temperatures as low as minus 50 degrees Fahrenheit and powerful winds up to 100 mph.
C. The male moose sheds its antlers every winter and grows a new set the following year.
D. The weasel and the ermine are the same animal. The only difference is the brown coat of the weasel turns white in the winter when it is known as an ermine.

A. Some species of domesticated dogs turn white in the winter.
FTO: At least as far as The QuizQueen knows this isn’t true.

2. Which flying creature fact is true?
A. The Rufous, a species of Hummingbird, nests in Alaska and migrates miles to Mexico each winter and then back to Alaska in the spring.
B. Many species of butterfly fly south for the winter just like many birds.
C. None
D. Both

D. Both
FTO: I wouldn’t have expected to find Hummingbirds in Alaska either!

3. Ice fog is a winter weather phenomenon. Which fact is NOT related to this event?
A. It frequently occurs in Alaska.
B. It frequently occurs in Maine.
C. It glitters in sunlight and is colorfully known as diamond dust.
D. It contains minute ice particles.

B. It frequently occurs in Maine.
FTO: OK, maybe some Maine resident can prove me wrong, but it wasn’t listed among MY facts.

4. Did you know that human hair grows at different rates for different times of day and year? For example, it speeds up in the morning, slows down in the afternoon, and speeds up again in the evening. What is the rate of growth in the winter?
A. Slower than summer.
B. Faster than summer.
C. The same as in summer.
D. The same all year round because the QuizQueen is making this up.

A. Slower than summer.
FTO: Gee, did you really think The QuizQueen would make up such a silly question?

5. During the winter, winds seem to bite through you with cold. Can you pick out the true windy phenomenon?
A. The Bora is a violent cold north wind in the Adriatic.
B. The Mistral is a strong cold dry north wind that blows during the winter in Rhone Valley, France.
C. The Puna is a cold dry wind that blows in Peru.
D. The Williwaw is a sudden strong cold wind off-shore from mountains in Alaska and Canada.

Trick question, they are all winds!
FTO: They were such fun names I couldn’t choose and so went with them all.

6. Can you pick out the FALSE nor’easter fact?
A. This is the coastal warm front storm which typically strikes New England in February when warm moist air picked up from the tropics moves north up the coast and meets a mass of polar air from Eastern Canada and the North Atlantic which is moving south.
B. A nor’easter is created when a mass of warm air hits a mass of cold air somewhere in the vicinity of Cape Cod.
C. The winds of a nor’easter blow so strong and fierce that even when snow falls it does not accumulate.
D. When warm air moves up and over a layer of cold air, a nor’easter is created and snow crystals form and fall. If the storm moves quickly, cold rain or snow will fall for six to eight hours. If the warm air stalls against a high pressure wall, the snowfall may last 12-24 hours or even longer.

C. The winds of a nor’easter blow so strong and fierce that even when snow falls it does not accumulate.
FTO: I imagine there are plenty of people who WISH this were true.

7. In 1888, the United States experienced one of the worst recorded blizzards. Which Blizzard of ’88 fact was made up by The QuizQueen?
A. On March 11, 1888, a nor’easter stalled over New York City and dumped 21 inches of snow with 70 mph gusts piling snow into 20-foot drifts which marooned New Yorkers in elevated trains, carriages, and office buildings.
B. The Blizzard of 1888 was completely invented by The QuizQueen and in fact no snow fell that winter in northeast America except in trace amounts.
C. The 1888 blizzard extended from Maine to Washington, D.C., and from New York to Pittsburgh. The storm stalled for a day and a half. In Connecticut and central Massachusetts, between 40 and 50 inches of snow fell. Winds piled it into 40 to 50 foot drifts which buried houses and trains.
D. From Chesapeake Bay to Nantucket, 200 ships were sunk or severely damaged. In 1888, 400 lives were lost, a tragedy that modern weather forecasting has spared us.

B. The Blizzard of 1888 was completely invented by The QuizQueen and in fact no snow fell that winter in northeast America except in trace amounts.
FTO: This was pretty serious stuff.

8. Do you know why 1816 was called “The Year Without Summer?” Are all these facts true, or is one false?
A. During June and July Connecticut experienced a rare summer blizzard and snow and sleet fell in Danville, Vermont.
B. While unseasonably frigid summer temperatures brought crop failures all over New England, Massachusetts had snow flurries.
C. Savannah, Georgia, had a high temperature of only 46 degrees Fahrenheit on July 4.
D. The eruption of the Tambora volcano in Java the previous year spewed dust and ash into the atmosphere and caused the unusually cold summer of 1816.

All true.
FTO: Pretty weird, huh?

9. Which United States city has the coldest winter temperature on average?
A. Mt. Washington, New Hampshire
B. Kotzebue, Alaska
C. Helena, Montana
D. Barrow, Alaska

D. Barrow, Alaska
FTO: Although none of these places are too balmy in the winter! Just imagine an average temperature of 4.1 degrees Fahrenheit.

10. On average, one inch of rain is equivalent to how many inches of snow?
A. 1
B. 5
C. 10
D. 12

C. 10
FTO: Results can vary, but that’s the average, according to The QuizQueen’s weather sources.

11. How much do you know about snow? Which snow fact is true?
A. It must be 32 degrees Fahrenheit or colder for it to snow.
B. It must be 0 degrees Fahrenheit or colder for it to snow.
C. It cannot snow from clear skies.
D. The temperature of snow clouds must be 32 degrees Fahrenheit or colder for snow to form.

D. The temperature of snow clouds must be 32 degrees Fahrenheit or colder for snow to form.
FTO: It can be warmer on the ground and you don’t even need clouds to snow. Doesn’t seem fair, really.

12. Test your snowflake knowledge and pick out the incorrect answer.
A. Snowflakes comes in several basic shapes, hexagonal plates, stellar crystals, columns, needles, and graupel.
B. No two snowflakes are exactly alike.
C. Snowfall levels are categorized into flurries, showers, squalls, blowing snow, and blizzards.
D. It can be too cold to snow.

D. It can be too cold to snow.
FTO: It can never be too cold to snow although it usually doesn’t snow very heavily when temperatures fall really low.

13. How advised are you about winter weather advisories? Is one of these false?
A. A blizzard warning means snow and strong winds will combine to produce blinding snow with near zero visibility, deep drifts, and life-threatening wind chill.
B. The difference between a winter storm watch and a winter storm warning is that severe winter conditions have begun when a winter storm warning is issued.
C. A winter weather advisory is when weather causes severe conditions that are inconvenient and may be hazardous, especially for motorists.
D. A frost-freeze warning means that temperatures are expected to fall below zero degrees Fahrenheit and may cause significant damage to plants, crops, or fruit trees.

D. A frost-freeze warning means that temperatures are expected to fall below zero degrees Fahrenheit and may cause significant damage to plants, crops, or fruit trees.
FTO: Well, yeah, but they don’t usually issue warnings about that do they, they only bother when it is nearing 32 degrees Fahrenheit, right?

14. The National Weather Service defines “heavy snow” as:
A. Snowfall that accumulates 6 or more inches in 12 hours or 8 or more inches in 24 hours.
B. Wet snow.
C. Thundersnow.
D. None of these answers is right, The QuizQueen must not know.

A. Snowfall that accumulates 6 or more inches in 12 hours or 8 or more inches in 24 hours.
FTO: Don’t you just love the term thundersnow? The QuizQueen will send some your way if you guessed “D.”

15. Which U.S. city has the highest average snowfall?
A. Stampede Pass, Washington
B. Valdez, Alaska
C. Mt. Washington, New Hampshire
D. Watertown, New York

A. Stampede Pass, Washington
FTO: 440.3 inches! Yipes, even for someone who grew up in the snow belt that is depressing to think about.

16. Which U.S. city has the coldest record temperature?
A. Mt. Washington, New Hampshire
B. Glasgow, Montana
C. Nome, Alaska
D. McGrath, Alaska

D. McGrath, Alaska
FTO: -75, can you even imagine? Mt. Washington is the warmest with its record low of only –47 degrees Fahrenheit.