UPSC required Daily Topic Quiz: Environment and Geography MCQs on Santa Ana Wind, Right Whales and More (Week 89) | UPSC Current Affairs News

Statement 1: Arctic sea ice is shrinking by 12.6% every decade.

Statement 2: This pace of sea ice decline is unmatched by any point in at least 1,500 years.

Which of the following is correct regarding the above statements?

(a) Both statement 1 and statement 2 are correct and statement 2 is the correct interpretation of statement 1.

(b) Both statement 1 and statement 2 are correct and statement 2 is not the correct explanation for statement 1.

(c) Statement 1 is correct but statement 2 is false.

(d) Statement 1 is false but statement 2 is correct.

explanation

– According to a new study, the Arctic Ocean could experience its first ice-free day – when its waters contain less than one million square kilometers of sea ice – by 2030, which is earlier than previously thought. The scenario is unusual, but it’s possible, and according to the analysis, it’s becoming more plausible as humans continue to release unprecedented amounts of heat-trapping greenhouse gases (GHGs).

– The study, ‘First ice-free day in the Arctic Ocean could be before 2030’, was published in the journal Nature Communications. This was done by Celine Hughes of the University of Gothenburg (Sweden) and Alexandra Jahn of the University of Colorado Boulder (USA).

– Arctic sea ice has been shrinking for decades. According to a 2023 article from the MIT Climate Portal, sea ice extent has decreased by 12.6% per decade over the past 40 years, a rate unprecedented in at least 1,500 years. Hence, statements 1 and 2 are correct.

— The researchers used 11 different climate models to conduct 366 simulations of climate change and Arctic sea ice concentration between 2023 and 2100. Most simulations estimate that the first ice-free day in the Arctic will occur within seven to twenty years. Humanity will significantly reduce greenhouse gas emissions over the next few years.

Both statement 1 and statement 2 are correct and statement 2 is not the correct explanation for statement 1.

Therefore, option (b) is the correct answer.

Question 2

Regarding the right whale, consider the following statements:

1. Right whale populations have declined and are back on the brink of extinction.

2. These whales are found in the Indian Ocean.

Which of the above statements is/are correct?

(a) 1 only

(b) 2 only

(c) Both 1 and 2

(d) Neither 1 nor 2

explanation

– One of the rarest whale species in the world has been seen growth in population, prompting conservationists to urge the federal government as well as the shipping and fishing industries to do more to save the giant animals from extinction. Therefore, statement 1 is not correct.

— The North Atlantic right whale, which weighs 150,000 pounds (68,039 kg) and lives on the East Coast, saw its population decline in 2010. The critically endangered whales, which are threatened by global warming and vulnerable to shipwrecks and entanglement in fishing gear, were reduced to fewer than 360 individuals in the early 2020s.

— The number of researchers studying whale populations is expected to reach 372 by 2023. That’s a 4% increase from 2020, and “heartening news” after whale populations declined by 25% between 2010 and 2020, according to the researchers.

– Sits on the right whale North Atlantic, North Pacific, and Southern Ocean. Hence, statement 2 is not correct.

Therefore, option (d) is the correct answer.

Question 3

Regarding the ‘Santa Ana’ wind, consider the following statements:

1. These winds blow when high pressure builds up in the Great Basin – the area between the Rocky Mountains and the Sierra Nevada.

2. These winds require high pressure along the California coast.

3. These winds usually come from March to June.

How many of the above statements are correct?

(a) Only one

(b) Only two

(c) All three

(d) None

explanation

— Firefighters are still battling a wildfire that started Dec. 9 in the luxury coastal community of Malibu, Calif. The so-called Franklin Fire has burned 4,000 acres and affected nearly 22,000 people.

– Although the exact cause of the fire is unknown, scientists believe it was caused by two factors: the “Santa Ana” wind and climate change.

What are the ‘Santa Ana’ winds?

— Santa Ana winds are caused by high pressure in the Great Basin between the Rocky Mountains and the Sierra Nevada (a mountain range in the western United States). Low pressure is present along the California coast. Pressure differences cause violent winds to travel across the basin’s inland deserts, east and north of Southern California, mountains, and the Pacific Ocean. So statement 1 is correct and statement 2 is not correct.

– When air descends mountains, it is compressed and warmed. Wind also reduces humidity, sometimes as low as 20% or even 10%. Abnormally low humidity levels dry out vegetation, preparing it for burning. This process contributed to the spread of the Malibu fire.

– Santa Ana winds usually blow from October to January. “Winter weather patterns allow high pressure to build near the surface of the Great Basin, which interacts with low-pressure air over the Pacific,” Rose Schoenfeld, a National Weather Service meteorologist in Oxnard, California, told Bloomberg. Hence, statement 3 is not correct.

Therefore, option (a) is the correct answer.

Question 4

Consider the following pairs of national waterways:

National Waterways	related to the river
National Waterway – 1	River Ganges
National waterways – 2	West Coast Canal
National waterways – 3	Brahmaputra river

How many of the above pairs are correctly matched?

(a) Only one pair

(b) Only two pairs

(c) All three pairs

(d) Any pair

explanation

National Waterways	related to the river	Description
National Waterway – 1	River Ganges	The Ganga-Bhagirathi-Hooghly river system between Haldia (Sagar) and Prayagraj (1620 km) was designated as National Waterway-1 (NW-1) in 1986.
National waterways – 2	Brahmaputra river	On September 1, 1988, the Brahmaputra River, which stretches 891 km between the Bangladesh border and Saadia, was designated as National Waterway No. 2 (NW-2).
National waterways – 3	West Coast Canal	The National Waterway is made up of three canals: West Coast Canal (Kottapuram-Kollam), Udyogmandal Canal (Kochi-Pathalam Bridge), and Champakara Canal (Kochi-Ambalamugal).

Therefore, option (a) is the correct answer.

(Other sources: iwai.nic.in)

Question 5

The report “State of Global Water Resources 2023” is published by:

(a) WaterAid India

(b) Indian Water Works Association

(c) World Meteorological Organization

(d) Water Quality Association

explanation

– The State of Global Water Resources report, citing five-year average river flows and reservoir flows, underscores the severe strain on global water supplies.

– This scarcity is damaging communities, agriculture and ecosystems. Furthermore, glaciers have recorded the largest mass loss in the last 50 years, marking 2023 as the second year of significant ice loss globally.

– Research highlights that 2023 was the hottest year on record, with frequent droughts and severe floods due to the La Niña to El Niño transition and human-induced climate change.

– The report provides a global assessment of water resources, relying on meteorological and hydrological data to support decision makers in water-sensitive areas and disaster risk management. It complements World Meteorological Organizationof the “State of the Global Climate” series.

Therefore, option (c) is the correct answer.

(source: wmo.int)

Previous Daily Topic-Topic-Quiz

Daily Topic-Wise Quiz – History, Culture, and Social Issues (Week 89)

Daily Topical Quiz – Politics and Governance (Week 89)

Daily Thematic Quiz – Science and Technology (Week 89)

Daily Thematic Quiz — Environment and Geography (Week 88)

Daily Topical Quiz — Economics (Week 88)

Daily Topic Quiz – International Relations (Week 88)

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