10 Wild Conspiracy Theories about Natural Phenomena

When a natural disaster happens, the most common response is to rescue survivors, determine the damage, and then try to rebuild. Those directly affected often feel overwhelmed, disoriented, and scared. Those far away watch helplessly as terrible scenes unfold on their TV screens and across social media platforms.

But then there are the conspiracists. People who pause every frame of every news report to find the “real reason” for natural disasters or phenomena. And, just like that, another wild conspiracy theory (or ten) gets added to the list.

Related: Top 10 Conspiracy Theories Involving Clones

10 Volcanic Eruptions Are Nuclear Tests

The so-called potent combination of nuclear power and volcanoes has long ignited imaginations worldwide. By imaginations, I mean it has fueled conspiracy theories that claim nuclear tests trigger strong volcanic eruptions.

This was the case with the volcanic outburst in Tonga two years ago. The sea-level Hunga Tonga Hunga Ha’apai eruption was so massive that people heard it in New Zealand 1,430 miles (2,300 kilometers) away. The blast was so powerful that it sent enough water vapor into our stratosphere to fill more than 58,000 swimming pools (Olympic-sized ones). It also caused a rush of tsunami waves across the Pacific.

But despite this being a natural—with the emphasis on natural—disaster, social media was soon flooded with claims that the blast was actually a nuclear explosion. Others started sharing a TikTok clip that apparently shows a white object entering the sea before the blast. No matter how much evidence scientists and experts presented of a significant volcanic eruption, conspiracy theorists are not ready to let this one go.^[1]

9 Pfizer and the Tornado

Pfizer has had its fair share of conspiracy theories aimed at its operations. The company has been accused of hiding data that allegedly shows the COVID-19 vaccine causes birth defects.

However, there is another theory that refuses to die down: the one that claims a Rocky Mount, North Carplina, EF3 tornado was engineered just so that Pzifer could score a massive insurance payout. Some rejoiced on social media, claiming that a Pfizer warehouse stocked with COVID-19 vaccines had been the sole casualty of the devastating tornado.

Factually speaking, the tornado damaged a Pfizer plant in Rocky Mount, which produces 25% of injectable products like anti-infectives and anesthetics for hospitals in the U.S. It also tore through houses, buildings, and a daycare center, leaving utter destruction in its wake. However, these facts did nothing to deter the swirling conspiracies.

Some claimed that the tornado was a weather manipulation event created by HAARP. Others asserted their belief that it wasn’t a tornado but an energy weapon that destroyed “evidence.” Evidence of what, exactly? I guess we’d all like to know.^[2]

8 The New World Order and Australian Bushfires

Climate change continues to wreak havoc around the world. Global weather stations are recording extreme high and low temperatures over land and ocean. The combined data shows that Earth’s surface temperature is 1.8°F warmer than in 1880. Greenland’s ice sheet is melting fast; sea levels are rising, and the Arctic sea ice is rapidly disappearing. Climate change is also impacting wildfires, as seen in the U.S. and Australia. While it doesn’t directly lead to fires, hotter and drier climates lead to more frequent and devastating fires, especially in Australia.

However, according to conspiracy theorists, there is no such thing as climate change, and the concept is being used as a smokescreen to hide the real reason for Australian bushfires. They believe the bushfires were caused by arson aimed at quickly clearing a path so a high-speed rail could be built along the east coast of the country.

Some also believe that the country is under attack, while others insist that billionaires from China are burning open large sections of land so they can build cities on it. The conspiracies go even further by claiming individuals acting on behalf of the so-called New World Order are to blame for the fires because they want political destabilization and to control the population.^[3]

7 Project Blue Beam

Project Blue Beam is an ambitious conspiracy, if ever there was one, and it’s been around for a long time. This theory alleges that a one-world order will be established through sheer manipulation and advanced technology. It all started with the late investigative journalist and conspiracy theorist Serge Monast in 1994. He published his “findings” on Project Blue Beam, claiming that NASA and the UN were working on a four-stage project to build a New World Order.

According to Monast, they use holograms to fake cataclysmic events. These include volcanic eruptions, earthquakes, and more. They are also planning to stage a fake alien invasion at some point to destroy the public’s trust in science. Moreover, Monast alleged that Project Blue Beam would create a new celestial order using space weapons and fake astronomical phenomena. The project would also aim at projecting religious symbols into the sky to trick people into accepting a one-world order.

This bonkers theory doesn’t stop there. Apparently, Project Blue Beam is going to use subliminal messages via TV screens and other electronic devices, causing people to hallucinate the “Second Coming.” This is meant to unite the world under a single leader. Also, when everyone is confused or amazed (the theory doesn’t define which one is applicable), Project Blue Beam will introduce a one-world religion and government.

If you think no one will believe these outlandish theories, you are dead wrong. In 2021, people spotted an “army of UFOs” (most likely drones) in the sky and uploaded the footage to TikTok. Many people commented, saying it was the start of Project Blue Beam, and encouraged others to look it up on the internet.^[4]

6 Antarctica Is at the Mercy of Space Aliens

Antarctic ice is melting at a rate that is too fast for new snow to replace it. The ice sheet is shrinking faster every year. While melting ice in itself isn’t a natural disaster, it can trigger several natural disasters. Scientists believe that the weight of the ice in places like Antarctica and Greenland prevents tectonic plates from shifting. If the ice continues to melt, it could release the pressure on the plates, causing them to shift and potentially trigger a massive earthquake. Because global warming is still accelerating, the loss of ice shelves in Antarctica could lead to a catastrophic rise in sea level.

However, according to conspiracy theorists, global warming is not to blame for melting Arctic ice. No, it is space aliens trying to extract themselves from below the ice. Some believe that extraterrestrial beings are melting the ice using climate manipulation technology or directed energy weapons. Why are they doing this? Well, to take over Earth, of course.

So, what about rising sea levels? Why would aliens want to cause flooding and increase the saltwater levels of estuaries and groundwater aquifers? According to one particularly strange theory, they want to reveal the thinning veil between Earth and an interdimensional portal beneath Antarctica. It looks like they can only do this by melting the ice and not caring about the consequences.^[5]

5 Population Control via Flooding

Australia really goes through the most every year. If it’s not wildfires, it’s extreme flooding. In 2022, 50,000 people in Sydney had to evacuate their homes when the region received eight months’ worth of rainfall in four days. This natural disaster, driven by climate change and other factors like the La Niña phenomenon, spawned another bunch of conspiracy theories about cloud seeding.

These theories led to people sharing footage of aerial survey pilots on social media, claiming that they were seeding clouds when, in reality, they were collecting images for aerial maps. The overflow of misinformation then led to these pilots receiving more than 100 violent threats.

While the company employing the pilots tried to remedy the situation by responding to each threatening email, the conspiracy theories took an even darker turn. People started spouting even more nonsense on social media, this time claiming that the Australian government was to blame for the cloud seeding and flooding because they wanted to depopulate certain areas.^[6]

4 FEMA and Hurricane Sandy

FEMA (Federal Emergency Management Agency) is another government institution that can’t catch a break from conspiracy theories. Despite FEMA’s concerted effort to mobilize resources during the Hurricane Sandy disaster, conspiracy theorists are still convinced that the agency slowed down its response for political reasons. This included undermining the Obama administration. This theory still makes the rounds online now and then, even though it was proven that logistical challenges threw FEMA for a loop during the disaster, and there were no sinister agendas.

Another theory said that FEMA confiscated firearms from residents during the confusion and panic caused by the hurricane. Again, there is no documented proof of anyone confiscating weapons during this time, but the theory continues to pop up.

FEMA is often also the center of non-weather-related conspiracies. After FEMA sent out a notification that it would perform an emergency alert test on October 4, 2023, people took to social media to “warn others” about the dangers of the EAS system and how it would unleash viruses in vaccinated people by activating graphene oxide and other nanoparticles in their bodies.^[7]

3 The Yellowstone Supervolcano

Yellowstone’s supervolcano has had three powerful eruptions throughout history. The first was 2.1 million years ago, and the second was 1.3 million years ago. The last one was 664,000 years ago. Scientists don’t believe that the supervolcano is due for another eruption anytime soon, and some are convinced that the volcano will never have a massive eruption again.

But because scientists do things like study and hypothesize the aftermath of natural disasters, their paper on a hypothetical Yellowstone supereruption had conspiracy theorists running rampant on the internet yet again. The article stated that a supereruption would wipe out a handful of states and cover the Midwest in a blanket of debris. This would lead to unimaginable loss of life, including animals and plants. These scientific theories led to conspiracy theories stating that the Yellowstone caldera was due for a cataclysmic eruption at any moment and that it would plunge the entire world into a volcanic winter.

And, of course, the government is to blame once again. Those who buy into the imminent eruption theory also believe the U.S. government is downplaying the threat for its hidden agenda. Some even believe that the volcano will be triggered on purpose by terrorists hellbent on destroying America.

In all fairness, there is a tiny grain of reality in the terrorist theory. A Canadian man is alleged to have plotted triggering the supervolcano in an ultimately failed terrorist attack in 2015 but abandoned the plan for being “too difficult.”^[8]

2 Morocco Earthquake and Laser Weapons

In September 2023, the Marrakesh-Safi region of Morocco experienced a violent magnitude 6.8 earthquake. The quake killed nearly 3,000 people and destroyed several historic landmarks in Marrakesh. The quake was felt as far as Algeria, Spain, and Portugal. It was also the second-deadliest earthquake of 2023 after the earthquakes that rocked Turkey and Syria.

But in the face of all that trauma, loss, and suffering, some theorists thought it would be a good idea to come up with yet another insane conspiracy theory. This time, UFOs and mysterious laser weapons took center stage. X—formerly Twitter—users shared a video that purportedly showed a “drone” throwing lightning and a “laser-like beam” toward the ground in Morocco. It didn’t take long for the video to be debunked as old and altered for artistic purposes, but the damage was already done.

The video was viewed more than 200,000 times, and even more conspiracies were being shared, including the one that says laser weapons triggered the quake. Once again, HAARP was tossed into the mix and blamed for manipulating conditions to cause the earthquake. HAARP and even aliens were also blamed earlier in 2023 when the Turkey-Syria earthquake happened.

The Morocco earthquake, a rare occurrence in itself and the deadliest in the country in 60 years, is believed to have been the result of the African plate moving north and colliding with the Eurasian plate. The Turkey-Syria earthquake happened after two faults moved laterally against each other. The quake, unfortunately, killed more than 50,000 people.^[9]

1 Ice Age: What World Governments Don’t Want You to Know

Apparently, world governments are hiding the fact that there is no such thing as climate change, and the world is actually heading toward another Ice Age. What they don’t want you to know is that they will be causing said Ice Age to gain control over resources like land, minerals, and energy reserves. Also, it is believed to be an easy way to cull the population, allowing for easier control over those who stay behind. They are said to be using solar dimming and volcanic eruptions to try and achieve their diabolical goals.

This theory sounds like it was taken straight from the pages of an apocalyptic novel or from a disaster movie. Some conspiracy theorists even believe several countries are working together to unleash a permanent winter on the world because they would benefit from altered global shipping routes and access to strategic territories.

While an ice age is a real natural phenomenon, there is no evidence to suggest that we’re heading into another one—even if the sun enters a “quiet phase.” The sun goes through natural energy output changes, and the last time it became quiet (also known as the Grand Solar Minimum), it coincided with the Little Ice Age. But because humans already caused 0.2°C warming per decade, a quiet sun can only reduce temperatures by less than 0.3°C. This means the sun can offset only around 15 years of global warming. When it comes out of its quiet phase, global warming will again continue unabated.^[10]