[Mission 2023] Current Affairs Quiz ,6 December 2022

Solution: c)

Here are some famous volcanoes in the world.

Krakatoa, Indonesia: One of the most catastrophic volcanic eruptions ever occurred in Krakatoa in 1883.

Mount Vesuvius, Italy: In 79 CE, Mount Vesuvius erupted (VEI 5), in one of the deadliest eruptions in European history, killing as many as 16,000 and destroying the town of Pompeii.

Mount Fuji, Japan

Kīlauea, Hawaii: Adjacent to the Mauna Loa, this is one of the most active volcanoes on the planet.

Mount St Helens, USA: Located in Washington State, Mount St. Helens was a major eruption that occurred on May 18, 1980 (VEI 5), and it remains the deadliest and most economically destructive volcanic event in U.S. history.

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Solution: d)

The geothermal gradient, the amount that the Earth’s temperature increases with depth, indicates heat flowing from the Earth’s warm interior to its surface. At a certain depth, the heat is such that it melts rocks and creates what geologists call ‘magma’.

Magma is lighter than solid rock and hence it rises, collecting in magma chambers. Chambers which have the potential to cause volcanic eruptions are found at a relatively shallow depth. The magma that surfaces on the Earth’s crust is referred to as lava.

Why are some volcanic eruptions explosive and some not?

In simple terms, runny magma makes for less explosive volcanic eruptions that typically are less dangerous. Since the magma is runny, gasses are able to escape, leading to a steady but relatively gentle flow of lava out of the mouth of the volcano. The eruption at Mauna Loa is of this kind. Since the lava flows out at a slow pace, people typically have enough time to move out of the way.

If magma is thick and sticky, it makes it harder for gasses to escape on a consistent basis. This leads to a build-up of pressure until a breaking point is reached. At this time, the gasses escape violently, all at once, causing an explosion. Mount Vesuvius, which obliterated the city of Pompeii, is an example of an explosive volcano.

The Volcanic Explosivity Index (VEI) is a scale used to measure the explosivity of a volcano. It has a range of 1 to 8 with a higher VEI indicating more explosivity.

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Solution: b)

Karnataka has cited Article 3 of the Constitution to argue that the Supreme Court does not have the jurisdiction to decide the borders of states, and only Parliament has the power to do so.

The State Reorganisation Act was passed by the Parliament in 1956. The Act was based on the findings of the Justice Fazal Ali Commission, which was appointed in 1953 and submitted its report two years later.

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Solution: d)

India launched its e-Rupee on Thursday (December 1). The Reserve Bank of India’s Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC) is an electronic version of cash, and will be primarily meant for retail transactions. The pilot will initially cover the four cities of Mumbai, New Delhi, Bengaluru, and Bhubaneswar. Four banks will be involved in the controlled launch of the digital currency in these four cities: State Bank of India, ICICI Bank, Yes Bank, and IDFC First Bank.

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Solution: c)

“Phytoremediation”, a remediation method that uses living organisms like plants, microalgae, and seaweeds. One particular way to remove toxic heavy metals from the soil includes the use of “hyperaccumulator” plants that absorb these substances from the soil.

Phytoremediation refers to the usage of “hyperaccumulator” plants to absorb the toxic materials present in the soil and accumulate in their living tissue. Even though most plants do sometimes accumulate toxic substances, hyperaccumulators have the unusual ability to absorb hundreds or thousands of times greater amounts of these substances than is normal for most plants.

This process can be used to remove metals like silver, cadmium, cobalt, chromium, copper, mercury, manganese, molybdenum, nickel, lead and zinc; metalloids such as arsenic and selenium; some radionuclides; and non-metallic components such as boron. But it cannot be used to remove organic pollutants from the ground due to metabolic breakdown.