QUIZ – 2020: INSIGHTS STATIC , 12 July 2021 – Geography – INSIGHTSIAS

Solution: b)

In India, Andhra Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, and Madhya Pradesh are the three states that produce diamonds. Among them, Madhya Pradesh accounts for about 90% of the total diamond resource of the country.

Kimberlite, also called blue ground, a dark-coloured, heavy, often altered and brecciated (fragmented), intrusive igneous rock that contains diamonds in its rock matrix.

Russia is the world’s largest producer and exporter of rough diamonds.

Solution: b)

• The Deccan Plateau is a large triangular plateau, bounded by the Vindhyas to the north and flanked by the Eastern and Western Ghats.
• This region is mostly semi-arid as it lies on the leeward side of both Ghats. Much of the Deccan is covered by thorn scrub forest scattered with small regions of deciduous broadleaf forest. Climate in the Deccan ranges from hot summers to mild winters.

Solution: c)

The Siachen Glacier is a glacier located in the eastern Karakoram range in the Himalayas.

Solution: a)

What is La Niña?

It means the large-scale cooling of ocean surface temperatures in the central and eastern equatorial Pacific Ocean, together with changes in the tropical atmospheric circulation, namely winds, pressure and rainfall.

• It has the opposite impacts on weather and climate as El Niño, which is the warm phase of the El Niño Southern Oscillation (ENSO).

How is La Niña linked with the Northeast monsoon?

While La Niña conditions enhance the rainfall associated with the Southwest monsoon, it has a negative impact on rainfall associated with the Northeast monsoon.

During La Niña years, the synoptic systems — low pressure or cyclones — formed in the Bay of Bengal remain significantly to the north of their normal position.

• Besides, instead of moving westwards, these systems recurve. As they lie to the north of their normal position, not much rainfall occurs over southern regions like Tamil Nadu.

Solution: c)

Solar Eclipse is a natural event that takes place on Earth when the Moon moves in its orbit between Earth and the Sun (this is also known as an occultation).

• It happens at New Moon, when the Sun and Moon are in conjunction with each other.
• During an eclipse, the Moon’s shadow (which is divided into two parts: the dark umbra and the lighter penumbra) moves across Earth’s surface.

Then, why isn’t there a solar eclipse every month?

• If the Moon was only slightly closer to Earth, and orbited in the same plane and its orbit was circular, we would see eclipses each month.
• The lunar orbit is elliptical and tilted with respect to Earth’s orbit, so we can only see up to 5 eclipses per year.
• Depending on the geometry of the Sun, Moon and Earth, the Sun can be totally blocked, or it can be partially blocked.