Q 01/05

Which months make up winter in the Northern Hemisphere?

A) September, October, November

B) December, January, February

C) March, April, May

D) June, July, August

Answer · why

B) December, January, February

December, January, February: those are the north's coldest months, while the seasons flip south of the equator, so Australians can spend Christmas at ...

Q 02/05

What is special about the winter solstice?

A) It is the coldest day

B) It is the shortest day

C) It is the snowiest day

D) It is the last day of winter

Answer · why

B) It is the shortest day

It is the shortest day of the year: the Sun takes its lowest, shortest path across the sky, and from then on the days slowly start to lengthen again.

Q 03/05

Under a microscope, the simplest snow crystals turn out to be which flat shape?

A) Triangle

B) Square

C) Hexagon

D) Octagon

Answer · why

C) Hexagon

Hexagon: water molecules lock together in a six-sided pattern as they freeze, which is why almost every snow crystal that branches grows six arms.

Q 04/05

Vermont farmer Wilson Bentley spent his winters from 1885 photographing thousands of what?

A) Animal tracks

B) Snowflakes

C) Winter birds

D) Pine cones

Answer · why

B) Snowflakes

Snowflakes: he fixed a bellows camera to a microscope and photographed each flake before it could melt, which earned him the nickname Snowflake Bentle...

Q 05/05

Ice is clear, so why does snow look white?

A) It reflects the clouds above

B) It is full of frozen dust

C) It scatters all colours of light

D) It absorbs all colours of light

Answer · why

C) It scatters all colours of light

It scatters all colours of light: sunlight bounces off countless tiny crystal faces, and the colours mixed together look white, though very deep snow ...