Humans have often not been able to explain things and turned to magic for explanations. Just because you don't have the answer today doesn't mean we should make one up to make yourself more comfortable. Here are just a few examples of this in the past:

Examples: Greek Mythology (Zeus): Zeus, the king of the gods, was believed to hurl lightning bolts as a display of his authority or to punish mortals. Thunder was the sound of his bolts or chariot. Hesiod’s Theogony describes Zeus using lightning to defeat the Titans, symbolizing his control over the cosmos.

Norse Mythology (Thor): Thor, the god of thunder, was thought to create lightning with his hammer, Mjölnir, as he rode his chariot across the sky. Thunder was the hammer’s strike or the chariot’s rumble. The Poetic Edda recounts Thor’s battles with giants, where storms reflect his might.

Yoruba Mythology (Shango): In West African Yoruba tradition, Shango, the god of thunder and lightning, was believed to unleash lightning as a sign of his fiery temper or justice. His double-headed axe symbolized lightning’s destructive power, and thunder was his voice. Oral traditions link Shango to storms over Oyo.

Hindu Mythology (Indra): Indra, the Vedic god of war and weather, wielded the vajra (thunderbolt) to slay demons like Vritra and bring rain. The Rigveda describes Indra’s lightning as a cosmic weapon, with thunder as his roar.

Scientific Explanation: Lightning is an electrostatic discharge between clouds or between a cloud and the ground, caused by charge separation in thunderstorms. Thunder is the sound of rapidly expanding air heated by the lightning. Benjamin Franklin’s 1752 kite experiment and later studies of atmospheric electricity debunked divine causes.

Examples: Greek Mythology (Poseidon): Poseidon, god of the sea and earthquakes, was called the “Earth-Shaker.” His trident strikes were believed to cause quakes, especially in coastal regions like Greece. The Iliad links Poseidon’s anger to seismic events.

**Japanese Mythology theologians, who believed the god stirred under the islands, causing quakes. The Nihon Shoki chronicles Namazu’s role in seismic myths.

Māori Mythology (Rūaumoko): In New Zealand, Rūaumoko, the unborn god of earthquakes and volcanoes, was said to rumble within his mother, Papatūānuku (Earth), causing tremors. Māori oral traditions tie his movements to volcanic and seismic activity.

Scientific Explanation: Earthquakes result from tectonic plate movements along faults, releasing stored elastic energy. The development of plate tectonics in the 20th century, building on Alfred Wegener’s 1912 continental drift theory, explained quakes as natural, not divine.

Examples: Chinese Mythology (Heavenly Dog): Ancient Chinese believed a celestial dragon or dog devoured the sun or moon during eclipses, prompting rituals like banging drums to scare it away. The Shujing (Book of Documents) references such beliefs.

Hindu Mythology (Rahu): The demon Rahu, a severed head, was said to swallow the sun or moon during eclipses as revenge against the gods. The Mahabharata and Bhagavata Purana describe Rahu’s pursuit, with eclipses ending when the sun or moon escapes his mouth.

Inuit Mythology (Malina and Anningan): In Inuit lore, the sun goddess Malina and her brother, the moon god Anningan, chased each other. During an eclipse, one caught the other, temporarily extinguishing their light. Oral traditions link this to sibling rivalry.

Scientific Explanation: A solar eclipse occurs when the moon passes between the Earth and sun, casting a shadow. A lunar eclipse happens when the Earth’s shadow blocks sunlight from the moon. Ancient astronomers like Ptolemy (2nd century CE) began modeling these events, and modern astronomy confirms they follow predictable orbital mechanics.

Examples: Hawaiian Mythology (Pele): Pele, the goddess of volcanoes and fire, was believed to reside in Kīlauea’s Halemaʻumaʻu crater. Eruptions were her anger or creative acts, forming new land. Hawaiian chants and hula honor Pele’s power over lava flows.

Greek Mythology (Hephaestus): Hephaestus, the god of fire and smithing, was linked to volcanic activity, with his forge under mountains like Etna. The Odyssey and other texts associate his work with volcanic fumes and eruptions.

Roman Mythology (Vulcan): Vulcan, the Roman equivalent of Hephaestus, was tied to volcanoes (hence “volcano”). His forge under Mount Vesuvius was thought to cause eruptions, as seen in Pliny the Younger’s accounts of the 79 CE eruption.

Scientific Explanation: Volcanic eruptions occur when magma, gas, and ash escape from Earth’s crust, often at tectonic boundaries. The 19th-century study of volcanology, advanced by figures like James Dwight Dana, explained eruptions as geological processes driven by mantle convection and pressure.

Examples: Aztec Mythology (Tlaloc): Tlaloc, the rain god, controlled precipitation, bringing life-giving rain or destructive floods. The Florentine Codex describes sacrifices to Tlaloc to ensure rain for crops, with droughts signaling his displeasure.

Egyptian Mythology (Tefnut): Tefnut, goddess of moisture, was linked to rain and dew in Egypt’s arid climate. Her absence caused drought, and myths in the Pyramid Texts connect her to the Nile’s cycles.

Slavic Mythology (Perun): Perun, a thunder and rain god, was believed to bring storms and fertility. His battles with the serpent Veles, per Slavic folklore, caused rain to fall, nourishing crops.

Scientific Explanation: Rain results from the water cycle, where evaporation, condensation, and atmospheric circulation produce precipitation. Droughts stem from prolonged high-pressure systems or climate patterns like El Niño. John Dalton’s 18th-century work on meteorology laid the groundwork for understanding these processes.

Examples: Norse Mythology (Valkyries): The aurora was thought to be light reflecting off the Valkyries’ shields as they guided warriors to Valhalla. The Prose Edda hints at such celestial phenomena tied to divine activity.

Sámi Mythology (Ancestors): In Sámi tradition, the aurora represented ancestral spirits or the souls of the dead, with gods like Beaivi (the sun deity) influencing its appearance. Whistling at the lights was taboo, as it could anger the spirits.

Algonquian Mythology (Creator’s Fire): Some Algonquian tribes believed the aurora was a divine fire lit by the Creator or Nanabozho to signal hope. Oral traditions tied it to spiritual communication.

Scientific Explanation: The aurora borealis is caused by charged particles from the sun hitting gases in Earth’s atmosphere, exciting them to emit light. Kristian Birkeland’s early 20th-century research on geomagnetic storms explained this phenomenon.