[Mission 2023] INSIGHTS STATIC QUIZ, 05 August 2022 – Geography

Solution: c)

The lofty Himalayas in the north along with its extensions act as an effective climatic divide. The towering mountain chain provides an invincible shield to protect the subcontinent from the cold northern winds.

These cold and chilly winds originate near the Arctic circle and blow across central and eastern Asia. The Himalayas also trap the monsoon winds, forcing them to shed their moisture within the subcontinent.

As compared to the landmass, water heats up or cools down slowly. This differential heating of land and sea creates different air pressure zones in different seasons in and around the Indian subcontinent. Difference in air pressure causes reversal in the direction of monsoon winds.

With a long coastline, large coastal areas have an equable climate. Areas in the interior of India are far away from the moderating influence of the sea. Such areas have extremes of climate.

Solution: d)

To understand the differences in local climates of India, we need to understand the mechanism of the following three factors:

(i) Distribution of air pressure and winds on the surface of the earth.

(ii) Upper air circulation caused by factors controlling global weather and the inflow of different air masses and jet streams.

(iii) Inflow of western cyclones generally known as disturbances during the winter season and tropical depressions during the south-west monsoon period into India, creating weather conditions favourable to rainfall.

Solution: a)

Situated on the northeastern tip of the country, the state of Arunachal Pradesh is a part of Eastern Himalayan Ranges. The important forests types found in the state are Tropical evergreen, semi evergreen, deciduous, Pine, Temperate, Alpine and grassland.

Solution: d)

All are responsible for thunderstorms.

A thunderstorm, is a storm characterized by the presence of lightning and its acoustic effect on the Earth’s atmosphere, known as thunder.

Thunderstorms occur in a type of cloud known as a cumulonimbus. They are usually accompanied by strong winds, and often produce heavy rain and sometimes snow, sleet, or hail, but some thunderstorms produce little precipitation or no precipitation at all.

Thunderstorms result from the rapid upward movement of warm, moist air, sometimes along a front. As the warm, moist air moves upward, it cools, condenses, and forms a cumulonimbus cloud that can reach heights of over 20 kilometres. As the rising air reaches its dew point temperature, water vapor condenses into water droplets or ice, reducing pressure locally within the thunderstorm cell. Any precipitation falls the long distance through the clouds towards the Earth’s surface. As the droplets fall, they collide with other droplets and become larger. The falling droplets create a downdraft as it pulls cold air with it, and this cold air spreads out at the Earth’s surface, occasionally causing strong winds that are commonly associated with thunderstorms.

Solution: d)

Earth’s tilted axis causes the seasons. Throughout the year, different parts of Earth receive the Sun’s most direct rays. So, when the North Pole tilts toward the Sun, it’s summer in the Northern Hemisphere. And when the South Pole tilts toward the Sun, it’s winter in the Northern Hemisphere.