. On May 29, 1953, this beekeeper and his friend Namgyal Wangdi reached a spot that no one had been to before. He later led the first mechanised expedition to the South Pole and then in 1985 reached the North Pole along with Neil Armstrong. Namgyal adopted this date as his birthday to celebrate the achievement. Who was this beekeeper from New Zealand and how better do we know Namgyal whose mentor we met in last week’s quiz?
Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay
. If you were at Point Nemo you would be the furthest from the closest land. The nearest person would be 2,688 km away. If you go to Google Earth and zoom in to 48°52.6′S 123°23.6′W, you’ll find it thoughtfully marked. If you pass Point Nemo at the right time of day, you’ll be closer to the astronauts in the International Space Station, 400 km up in space, than any other human on earth. Where in the world is Point Nemo?
The Pacific Ocean
. The Dragon’s Triangle is a region south of Tokyo, which is considered to have paranormal properties. According to researchers many ships were lost without a trace in this area due to sudden loss in electronics and major disruptions in the compass. It has been often called as the Asian twin of a more well-known area found in the Atlantic Ocean. What is this supposedly paranormal place?
The Bermuda Triangle
. This desert is currently going through a dry spell and is expected to be green again in about 15,000 years. The name of the place means ‘desert’ in a dialect of Arabic, so if you were to translate the name, it literally means ‘desert desert’. It is technically the third largest desert in the world though people usually think it’s number one. Which desert is this?
The Sahara Desert
. The Ischigualasto National Park in Argentina means ‘land without life’ as it is arid and dry. The valley contains round boulders and cliffs resulting from erosion, and at night, under starlight, the soil can appear almost white. Its lifeless environment and deserted landscape with strange formations led to its other name, which compares it with an unearthly object. What is this park’s other name?
Moon Valley or Valley of the Moon
. One of the highest peaks in Europe also gives its name to the highest volcano in the solar system (22 km tall, 2.5 times more than the Everest). A protected biosphere, this has a hallowed place in Greek mythology. Derivatives of its name have been used by many companies and can even be used as a verb to signify ‘huge’. What is this amazing haven of biodiversity?
Olympus
. This place hosts various communities of scientists who follow different time-zones. Certain communities follow the time-zone of the latitude they are located on. Others, however, use the time-zones of their home countries in order to communicate with them. This means that two communities on the same latitude could officially be several hours apart. Technically, this location is situated at a point on earth where all time-zones become one. Where is this incredible location, which actually is number one on a list already mentioned in this quiz?
Antarctica
. The term terra nullius is a latin expression used in international law to describe territory that has never been subject to the sovereignty of any state. Other than Antarctica, the only such area is Bir Tawil, a 2060 sq.km. patch of land along the border of Egypt and Sudan, which is uninhabited and claimed by neither country. Apparently, neither nation is interested in Bir Tawil simply because there’s nothing there; land between the borders is mostly sand and dry mountains. What does the term mean?
Nobody’s Land
. China has 16 unique land neighbours (two of which are special administrative regions of the country) and a total land border length of 22,147 km. One of its borders is also the highest border in the world, and interestingly, cuts across a major landmark exactly in the middle. What landmark is this and what country does it separate from China?
Mt. Everest and Nepal
. Armalcolite is a titanium rich mineral ((Mg,Fe2+)Ti2O5). It was picked up and brought back by three men who were on a historical mission to a place in 1969 and consequently named after them. The synthesis of Armalcolite requires low pressures, high temperatures and rapid quenching from about 1,000 °C to the ambient temperature. Who are the three people it is named after?
Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin, Michael Collins
A molecular biologist from Madurai, our quizmaster enjoys trivia and music, and is working on a rock ballad called ‘Coffee is a Drink, Kaapi is an Emotion’. @bertyashley
