UPSC Physical Geography – Chapter 7: Weathering, Mass Movement and Soil Formation (21 MCQs)

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UPSC Physical Geography – Chapter 7: Weathering, Mass Movement and Soil Formation (21 MCQs) – 21 questions, subject: Geography. Every question has the correct answer with a one-line explanation; tap "Show Answer". Free practice for TNPSC, UPSC, SSC, Bank and RRB exams – Shanmugam IAS Academy, Coimbatore.

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1.  

Weathering differs from erosion because weathering:

Correct Answer: A [breaks rocks in place, with little or no movement of material]

Explanation:

NCERT defines weathering as disintegration and decomposition of rocks in situ, with very little or no motion of material.

2.  

Carbonation is the reaction of minerals with:

Correct Answer: B [carbonic acid formed by carbon dioxide in water]

Explanation:

Carbon dioxide dissolved in rain or soil water forms carbonic acid, which reacts with carbonate and feldspar minerals.

3.  

Exfoliation of rock sheets is mainly the result of:

Correct Answer: D [unloading and temperature changes – physical weathering]

Explanation:

Release of overburden pressure and repeated heating and cooling make outer rock layers expand and peel off as curved sheets.

4.  

Oxidation of iron-bearing minerals usually gives rocks and soils a colour that is:

Correct Answer: A [red, brown or yellow]

Explanation:

Oxidised iron forms red, brown or yellow iron oxides, which colour red soils and laterite.

5.  

Frost wedging is most common:

Correct Answer: D [at high elevations in mid-latitudes, where water repeatedly freezes and thaws]

Explanation:

NCERT notes frost weathering is most effective at high elevations in mid-latitudes, where freezing and thawing repeat often.

6.  

Chemical weathering is most intense in:

Correct Answer: A [hot and humid regions]

Explanation:

Abundant water and high temperatures speed up solution, carbonation, hydration and oxidation, so chemical weathering peaks in hot, humid lands.

7.  

The slowest form of mass movement is:

Correct Answer: B [soil creep]

Explanation:

Soil creep is very slow and imperceptible, detected only over years by tilted fence posts and telegraph poles.

8.  

Solifluction occurs mostly:

Correct Answer: A [in cold regions where the surface thaws over frozen ground]

Explanation:

Solifluction is the slow flow of saturated soil where a thawed surface layer lies over frozen ground.

9.  

A slump is a landslide in which debris:

Correct Answer: D [slips with a backward rotation]

Explanation:

NCERT describes a slump as slipping of one or several units of debris with a backward rotation.

10.  

Consider the following statements:

1. Mass movements transfer rock debris down slopes under the influence of gravity.
2. Mass movements do not need an agent such as running water to carry the debris.
3. Mass movement is a form of erosion by wind.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

Correct Answer: B [1 and 2 only]

Explanation:

Gravity moves debris in mass movement without a carrying agent, so statements 1 and 2 are true and 3 is false.

11.  

Assertion (A): Weathering helps in the concentration of ores such as bauxite.

Reason (R): During weathering, soluble materials are leached away, leaving valuable residues behind.

Correct Answer: A [Both A and R are true, and R is the correct explanation of A]

Explanation:

Leaching removes soluble matter and leaves residues like bauxite behind, so R explains how weathering concentrates ores (A).

12.  

Which one of the following is an endogenic process?

Correct Answer: C [Diastrophism]

Explanation:

Diastrophism – orogeny, epeirogeny, earthquakes and plate movements – is driven by energy from within the Earth.

13.  

Epeirogeny refers to:

Correct Answer: B [uplift or warping of large parts of the crust]

Explanation:

Epeirogeny is the uplift or warping of large parts of the crust, unlike orogeny, which folds narrow belts.

14.  

Which one of the following is NOT a soil-forming factor listed by NCERT?

Correct Answer: C [Ocean currents]

Explanation:

NCERT's five factors are parent material, topography, climate, biological activity and time; ocean currents are not among them.

15.  

Hydration, a chemical weathering process, involves:

Correct Answer: D [chemical addition of water, as when calcium sulphate turns into gypsum]

Explanation:

Hydration is the chemical addition of water; calcium sulphate absorbing water to become gypsum is NCERT's example.

16.  

Salt weathering and granular disintegration are most common in:

Correct Answer: D [hot deserts]

Explanation:

High evaporation and big daily temperature ranges in hot deserts make salt crystals grow in pores, splitting rock grain by grain.

17.  

Arrange the following in chronological order:

1. Landslide Atlas of India released
2. Kedarnath disaster
3. Wayanad landslides
4. Malin landslide

Select the correct answer using the code given below:

Correct Answer: C [2-4-1-3]

Explanation:

2013, 2014, 2023, 2024.

18.  

Regolith is:

Correct Answer: A [the layer of loose weathered material above the bedrock]

Explanation:

Regolith is the mantle of loose, weathered material lying above the solid bedrock, from which soil develops.

19.  

The Wayanad landslides of July 2024 occurred in:

Correct Answer: C [Keralam (formerly Kerala)]

Explanation:

Wayanad is a hill district of Keralam in the Western Ghats; Mundakkai and Chooralmala were devastated on 30 July 2024.

20.  

The science of soils is called:

Correct Answer: B [pedology]

Explanation:

Pedology is the science of soils – their formation, classification and mapping.

21.  
UPSC Prelims 2024

Consider the following statements:

Statement-I: Rainfall is one of the reasons for weathering of rocks.

Statement-II: Rain water contains carbon dioxide in solution.

Statement-III: Rain water contains atmospheric oxygen.

Which one of the following is correct in respect of the above statements?

Correct Answer: A [Both Statement-II and Statement-III are correct and both of them explain Statement-I]

Explanation:

dissolved carbon dioxide forms carbonic acid (carbonation) and dissolved oxygen causes oxidation; both explain weathering by rain.

➤ Full notes, maps, tables, a reason for every option and Mains PYQs – U08 · Physical Geography (UPSC book, ₹249): www.shanmugamiasacademy.in/study-materials/upsc-physical-geography

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