UPSC Physical Geography – Chapter 8: Landforms – Running Water, Groundwater, Glaciers, Wind and Waves (21 MCQs)

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UPSC Physical Geography – Chapter 8: Landforms – Running Water, Groundwater, Glaciers, Wind and Waves (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.  

Shallow V-shaped valleys with waterfalls and rapids are typical of which stage of a river?

Correct Answer: B [Youth]

Explanation:

In youth, streams cut down vigorously, giving V-shaped valleys, with waterfalls and rapids where hard rock is exposed.

2.  

Stalactites are deposits of calcium carbonate that:

Correct Answer: A [hang from the roof of limestone caves]

Explanation:

Dripping lime-rich water loses carbon dioxide and deposits calcium carbonate, building icicle-like stalactites hanging from cave roofs.

3.  

A cirque is a landform made by:

Correct Answer: A [a glacier]

Explanation:

A cirque is a steep-walled basin carved by plucking and abrasion at the head of a glacial valley.

4.  

Barchans are crescent-shaped dunes whose horns point:

Correct Answer: D [away from the wind (downwind)]

Explanation:

(d) Correct (NCERT).

5.  

A fjord is:

Correct Answer: A [a deep glacial trough drowned by the sea]

Explanation:

Fjords are very deep glacial troughs whose lower parts are filled by sea water, as along Norway's coast.

6.  

A delta forms where a river:

Correct Answer: C [enters a sea or lake and drops its load as its velocity falls]

Explanation:

On entering a sea or lake the river's velocity falls, so it drops its load, which builds a stratified delta.

7.  

Mushroom rocks in deserts are formed mainly by:

Correct Answer: B [abrasion by sand-laden wind]

Explanation:

Sand-laden wind blows close to the ground, abrading the base of rocks more than the top, leaving a mushroom shape.

8.  

Oxbow lakes are found mainly:

Correct Answer: C [on the floodplains of mature and old rivers]

Explanation:

Meanders develop on gentle floodplains of mature and old rivers; a cut-off meander loop becomes an oxbow lake.

9.  

Sinkholes and swallow holes are associated with:

Correct Answer: A [karst topography]

Explanation:

Sinkholes and swallow holes form where groundwater dissolves limestone or dolomite – typical karst features.

10.  

Consider the following statements:

1. Eskers are ridges of sand and gravel laid down by meltwater streams under a glacier.
2. Drumlins are smooth, oval ridges of glacial till.
3. Moraines are formed by the deposits of wind.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

Correct Answer: B [1 and 2 only]

Explanation:

Eskers are meltwater deposits of sand and gravel and drumlins are oval till ridges; moraines are glacial, not wind, deposits.

11.  

Assertion (A): Incised meanders are found deep in hard rocks.

Reason (R): When land is uplifted, a meandering river cuts down vertically while keeping its winding course.

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

Explanation:

Uplift renews downcutting, so a meandering river entrenches its existing loops deep into hard rock, explaining incised meanders.

12.  

A spit is:

Correct Answer: C [a bar of sand or shingle attached at one end to the coast]

Explanation:

A spit is a bar of sand or shingle attached at one end to a headland or the coast.

13.  

A tombolo is:

Correct Answer: A [a bar linking an island to the mainland]

Explanation:

A tombolo is a bar or spit of sand that connects an island to the mainland.

14.  

A playa is:

Correct Answer: D [a shallow lake in a desert basin that dries up]

Explanation:

A playa is a shallow lake in a desert basin that dries up; salt-covered playas are called alkali flats.

15.  

Hanging valleys are associated with:

Correct Answer: D [glaciers]

Explanation:

Hanging valleys are tributary glacial troughs left high above a main valley that a larger glacier deepened.

16.  

A plunge pool is formed:

Correct Answer: B [at the base of a waterfall]

Explanation:

Falling water and swirling stones scour a large, deep plunge pool at the base of a waterfall.

17.  

Arrange the following stages in the formation of an oxbow lake in the correct sequence:

1. The neck of the meander becomes very narrow
2. The river develops a meander loop
3. The cut-off loop is sealed by deposits
4. Erosion on the outer bank and deposition on the inner bank enlarge the loop

Select the correct answer using the code given below:

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

Explanation:

A loop forms (2), is enlarged by outer-bank erosion and inner-bank deposition (4), its neck narrows (1), then the cut-off is sealed (3).

18.  

Karst topography is named after:

Correct Answer: D [a limestone region of the Balkans near the Adriatic Sea]

Explanation:

(d) Correct (NCERT).

19.  

Which of the following pairs consists of erosional landforms made by sea waves?

Correct Answer: B [Sea cliff and stack]

Explanation:

Sea cliffs are cut by wave erosion, and stacks are rock columns left when caves and arches collapse – both erosional.

20.  

Drumlins are made of:

Correct Answer: B [glacial till]

Explanation:

Drumlins are smooth, oval ridges composed mainly of glacial till, shaped beneath moving ice.

21.  
UPSC Prelims 2013

Consider the following:

1. Electromagnetic radiation
2. Geothermal energy
3. Gravitational force
4. Plate movements
5. Rotation of the earth
6. Revolution of the earth

Which of the above are responsible for bringing dynamic changes on the surface of the earth?

Correct Answer: D [1, 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6]

Explanation:

solar radiation drives exogenic agents, geothermal energy and plate movements drive endogenic forces, gravity moves material downslope, and rotation and revolution shape winds, currents, tides and seasons.

➤ 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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