Hurricane Ivan, a category 3 storm upon landfall, struck Alabama in 2004, causing over $18 billion in damage. It was one of the most destructive storms in the state’s modern history.

In 2002, the 11th US Circuit Court ordered the removal of the Ten Commandments statue. Chief Justice Roy Moore refused to follow the court order, leading to protests. The monument was eventually removed in August 2003.

The Wetumpka crater is a 5-mile (8 km)-wide meteorite impact crater located in Elmore County, just north of Montgomery. It is considered Alabama’s greatest natural disaster, created by a meteorite impact about 80 million years ago.

Some notable natural wonders in Alabama include:Natural Bridge rock, the longest natural bridge east of the Rockies Cathedral Caverns in Marshall County Ecor Rouge in Fairhope DeSoto Caverns in Childersburg Noccalula Falls in Gadsden Dismals Canyon near Phil Campbell Stephens Gap Cave in Jackson County Little ...Read more

Alabama has four National Forests: Conecuh, Talladega, Tuskegee, and William B. Bankhead.

Alabama has areas administered by the National Park Service, including:Horseshoe Bend National Military Park near Alexander City Little River Canyon National Preserve near Fort Payne Russell Cave National Monument in Bridgeport Tuskegee Airmen National Historic Site in Tuskegee Tuskegee Institute National Historic Site ...Read more

Alabama is usually ranked among the top in the nation for its range of overall biodiversity.

Alabama is part of the subtropical coniferous forest biome.

Pine forests form the largest proportion of forests in Alabama, which once boasted huge expanses of these forests.

There are 73 amphibian species in Alabama.