It's easy to get sick of having the same weather day after day, but drastic changes can really shake people up. These are some of the rarest natural phenomena out there — some are beautiful, others are deadly, and they all leave people in awe.
日复一日相似的天气很容易让人厌倦，但剧烈的天气变化着实会让人大吃一惊。这里列出的是一些最为罕见的自然现象——其中一些美轮美奂，还有一些可怕致命，都能让人心生敬畏。
10.多彩的雪
On a freezing cold morning in 2010, citizens of Stavropol, Russia woke up to multi-colored snow lining their streets. People were stunned when they saw light-purple and brown snow piled up. Others who heard the story may have thought it was a hoax, but scientists investigating the matter confirmed that there was a snowfall consisting of a multitude of colors.
在2010年一个寒冷刺骨的清晨，俄罗斯斯塔夫罗波尔的居民醒来看到街道上铺满了彩色的雪。当人们看到堆积起来的淡紫色和棕色的雪时，感到十分惊奇。一些人听说了这个故事，或许会觉得这是一个恶作剧，但科学家经过调查证实，的确降下了一场五颜六色的雪。
It wasn't toxic, but the experts warned that it wouldn't be wise to ingest any of the snow as it was most likely contaminated by dust all the way from Africa. The dust reached dizzying heights in the upper atmosphere where it mingled in with normal snow clouds. This interaction is what caused the beautifully colored snow to fall. That wasn't the first time it happened — in 1912, black snow fell over Alaska and Canada. The black color was thanks to volcanic ash and rocks that also mingled with snow clouds.
这些雪无毒，但专家警告不要吞咽这样的雪，因为它很有可能由非洲一路而来，包含了很多灰尘。这些灰尘进入上层大气中，在令人眩晕的高空汇合进自然的雪成云中。这种结合使一场美丽的彩色雪从天而降。这种现象并非第一次出现——在1912年，美国阿拉斯加州和加拿大都曾下过黑雪。那是因为雪成云中混合了火山灰和岩石，从而导致降雪呈现出黑色。
9.Derecho
In 2012, a massive and violent storm system made up of several thunderstorms and strong winds left a trail of destruction across the Midwest and mid-Atlantic. This terrifying type of storm is called a derecho, and in this case the storm was upgraded to a "super derecho" due to its severity.
2012年，由雷暴与强风组成的一个巨大而猛烈的暴雨系统给大西洋中部和美国中西部地区带来一系列破坏。这场可怕的暴风雨名为Derecho，在本次事件中，这场暴风雨由于其严重程度而升级为"超级Derecho"。
The main cause of the super-storm was the intense heat experienced over the area combined with a ripple in the jet stream. The state of Virginia experienced a massive power outage — cables snapped like twigs, trucks tumbled right over like they were made of cardboard and 13 people were killed. Derechos are very rare across the mid-Atlantic, only occurring every four years or so. Another extremely destructive derecho occurred in the United States in 2009. The storm system traveled 1000 miles in one day, leaving several dead and even more injured. A terrifying 45 tornadoes hit the ground during this storm.
这场超级暴风雨的主要成因是该地区遭受的酷热再加上急流扰动。弗吉尼亚州出现大规模的停电——电缆被刮断，树枝、卡车等好似纸片制作而成，顷刻之间就被掀翻，13人丧命。Derecho很少会穿过大西洋中部，大约每四年才会发生一次。2009年，另一场极具破坏性的Derecho袭击了美国。暴风雨系统在一天之内横扫1000英里，导致几人死亡多人受伤。在这场暴风雨期间，还有一场可怕的45级龙卷风袭击了地面。
8.冬雪惊雷
Residents of the east coast of the United States were experiencing an ordinary snow storm in 2011 when they suddenly witnessed flashes of lightning and streaks of thunder intermingled with the snow. Thundersnow was happening right in front of their eyes.
2011年，美国东海岸正经历着一场常见的暴风雪，就在这时，居民目睹了夹杂着大雪的闪电与惊雷。冬雪惊雷就发生在他们眼前。
Thundersnow mimics the inner workings of a normal thunderstorm by forming through the upward movement of humid air. It's the combination of lower humid air and higher cooler air that cause lightning and thunderstorms. This is exactly why thundersnow is so rare, seeing as how warm lower ground temperatures aren't usually present while it's snowing. Weather experts noted that the occurrence of thundersnow likely means more heavy snowfalls. Researchers have found that there's an over 80 percent chance that a minimum of six-inch deep snow will fall within a radius of seventy miles of the lighting flash taking place during a snowstorm.
冬雪惊雷形成的内部机制与普通的雷暴相似，都是湿润空气上升而成。低空的湿气遭遇高空冷空气，两者结合导致了闪电与雷暴。降雪期间，近地面的气温通常不会太高，正因如此，冬雪惊雷才如此罕见。气象专家解释，冬雪惊雷的发生可能意味着更大的降雪。研究者已经发现，在一场暴风雪中，半径70英里的闪电将带来至少六英尺厚的积雪，这种现象的发生概率在80%以上。
7.五彩缤纷的太阳风暴
We all know the northern lights, which usually appear as blue and green swirls in the sky. However, sometimes solar storms are so intense that they cause a kaleidoscope of colors to appear and can also be seen in regions where people have never witnessed them before. In 2012, one of these intense solar storms created a particularly beautiful aurora over Crater Lake in Oregon. It was believed by scientists that two clouds of glowing particles were flung toward Earth by sunspots bigger than our planet. The intensity of the auroras caused them to be seen as far as Maryland and Wisconsin, and they also put on a beautiful show in Canada on their way down from the Arctic.
我们都知道北极光，通常在天空中呈现蓝色和绿色的漩涡。但有时候，太阳风暴异常猛烈，会出现万花筒般五颜六色的北极光，而且还会出现在一些之前从未有过此现象的地方，让当地人一睹为快。2012年，一场猛烈的太阳风暴给美国俄勒冈州的火山湖带来了极其美丽的北极光。科学家认为，比我们的星球大得多的太阳黑子携两朵带有发光粒子的云猛冲向地球。北极光的强度有限，最远只能在马里兰州和威斯康辛州看得见，在它们前往北极降落之前也会为加拿大带来一场美丽的表演。
6.双龙卷风
Tornadoes occur every year around the world, but twin tornadoes only occur every ten to twenty years. When they do show up, they cause massive destruction. The town of Pilger in Nebraska has first-hand experience of the sheer damage these tornadoes can inflict in a matter of minutes. The twin tornado phenomenon hit the town in 2014, resulting in the death of a child and the injury of nineteen others.
每年世界各地都会发生龙卷风，但双龙卷风要十到二十年才会出现一次。它的出现往往会对当地造成大规模的破坏。美国内布拉斯加州的皮尔杰镇亲身体验了这种龙卷风在几分钟之内所带来的十足破坏。2014年双龙卷风袭击了这个城镇，造成一名儿童死亡，其他十九人受伤。
There's some disagreement on just how twin tornadoes are formed. Some experts believe that the occlusion process is conducive to the forming of these twisters. Occlusion takes place when a single tornado is wrapped with cold damp air. When this "wrapped" tornado starts to weaken it can cause a second tornado to spawn off itself. This usually happens when there's a lot of energy present in the original storm.
关于双龙卷风的成因目前还存在争议。一些专家认为锢囚锋的过程有助于这些旋风的形成。当一个龙卷风被冷湿气流缠绕的时候就会形成锢囚锋。当这种"被包裹的"龙卷风力量开始削弱的时候，它会从自身产生出第二个龙卷风。这种现象往往出现于原始风暴中有大量能量的情况下。另外一些专家认为多涡旋风暴系统或者分离的超级单体导致了双龙卷风。不管是什么原因，专家们都认为双龙卷风非常可怕，在其发生时需要躲避进遮蔽物中。
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