UPSC Physical Geography – Chapter 11: Insolation, Heat Budget and Temperature (24 MCQs)

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UPSC Physical Geography – Chapter 11: Insolation, Heat Budget and Temperature (24 MCQs) – 24 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.  

The Earth is farthest from the Sun (aphelion) on about:

Correct Answer: A [4 July]

Explanation:

On about 4 July the Earth is at aphelion, about 152 million km from the Sun, its farthest point.

2.  

The maximum insolation on the Earth's surface is received over the:

Correct Answer: B [subtropical deserts]

Explanation:

Subtropical deserts have the least cloudiness, so the most insolation reaches their surface.

3.  

The blue colour of the sky is due to:

Correct Answer: C [scattering of shorter wavelengths by very small particles]

Explanation:

Very small particles scatter the shorter blue wavelengths of visible light most, so the sky looks blue.

4.  

The atmosphere is heated mainly by:

Correct Answer: D [terrestrial (long-wave) radiation]

Explanation:

The air is largely transparent to insolation but absorbs the long-wave radiation from the heated Earth, so it is heated from below.

5.  

Advection refers to the transfer of heat by:

Correct Answer: B [horizontal movement of air]

Explanation:

Advection is the transfer of heat by horizontal movement of air, as with the loo of the northern plains.

6.  

According to NCERT, the albedo of the Earth is about:

Correct Answer: A [35 units]

Explanation:

NCERT gives 35 units reflected to space – 6 scattered, 27 from cloud tops, 2 from snow and ice – as the albedo.

7.  

Out of 100 units of insolation, the Earth's surface absorbs about:

Correct Answer: C [51 units]

Explanation:

Of 100 units, 35 are reflected and 14 absorbed by the atmosphere, leaving 51 units absorbed by the surface.

8.  

A surplus of net radiation is found between:

Correct Answer: D [40° N and 40° S]

Explanation:

(d) Correct (NCERT).

9.  

A temperature inversion near the ground is favoured by:

Correct Answer: C [a long night with a clear sky and calm air]

Explanation:

On a long, clear, calm night the ground loses heat fast by radiation, cooling the air near it below the air above.

10.  

Consider the following statements:

1. Water heats up and cools down more slowly than land.
2. Coastal areas have a lower annual range of temperature than continental interiors.
3. The annual range of temperature is lowest over north-eastern Eurasia.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

Correct Answer: B [1 and 2 only]

Explanation:

Statements 1 and 2 are correct; statement 3 is wrong because north-eastern Eurasia has the highest range, over 60 °C.

11.  

Assertion (A): In January, the isotherms bend sharply northward over the North Atlantic Ocean.

Reason (R): The warm Gulf Stream and North Atlantic Drift keep the North Atlantic warmer than the land.

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

Explanation:

The warm Gulf Stream and North Atlantic Drift keep the ocean warmer in winter, so the January isotherms bend sharply north there.

12.  

According to NCERT, the highest annual range of temperature is found over:

Correct Answer: D [north-eastern Eurasia]

Explanation:

more than 60 °C.

13.  

The solar constant, according to NCERT, is about:

Correct Answer: C [1.94 calories per cm² per minute]

Explanation:

NCERT gives the solar constant at the top of the atmosphere as about 1.94 calories per cm² per minute.

14.  

The hot "loo" winds of north India in summer are an example of heating by:

Correct Answer: A [advection]

Explanation:

The loo carries hot air horizontally across the northern plains, and horizontal transfer of heat is advection.

15.  

Isotherms are lines joining places of equal:

Correct Answer: A [temperature]

Explanation:

Isotherms are lines joining places having equal temperature.

16.  

The red colour of the rising and setting Sun is due to:

Correct Answer: B [scattering of light along a longer path through the atmosphere]

Explanation:

At sunrise and sunset light crosses a longer path of air; blue is scattered away, leaving the red wavelengths.

17.  

Arrange the following in chronological order:

1. National Solar Mission launched
2. Fourier describes heat-trapping by the atmosphere
3. Ahmedabad Heat Action Plan
4. Arrhenius links carbon dioxide and temperature

Select the correct answer using the code given below:

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

Explanation:

1824, 1896, 2010, 2013.

18.  

Which one of the following does NOT affect the amount of insolation received at a place?

Correct Answer: D [Salinity of the nearby ocean]

Explanation:

Insolation depends on rays' angle, day length, rotation, transparency and aspect; ocean salinity plays no part.

19.  

The surplus heat of the tropics is carried towards the poles mainly by:

Correct Answer: C [winds and ocean currents]

Explanation:

Winds and ocean currents carry surplus tropical heat poleward, balancing the deficit at high latitudes.

20.  

A coastal city such as Mumbai has a smaller annual range of temperature than an inland city such as Nagpur, mainly because of:

Correct Answer: B [the moderating influence of the sea]

Explanation:

water heats and cools more slowly than land.

21.  
UPSC Prelims 2025

Consider the following statements:

Statement I: In January, in the Northern Hemisphere, the isotherms bend equatorward while crossing the landmasses, and poleward while crossing the oceans.

Statement II: In January, the air over the oceans is warmer than that over the landmasses in the Northern Hemisphere.

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

Correct Answer: A [Both Statement I and Statement II are correct and Statement II explains Statement I]

Explanation:

In January the oceans stay warmer than the cooling land, so isotherms bend poleward over oceans and equatorward over land.

22.  
UPSC Prelims 2024

Which of the following is/are correct inference/inferences from isothermal maps in the month of January?

1. The isotherms deviate to the north over the ocean and to the south over the continent.
2. The presence of cold ocean currents, Gulf Stream and North Atlantic Drift make the North Atlantic Ocean colder and the isotherms bend towards the north.

Select the answer using the code given below:

Correct Answer: A [1 only]

Explanation:

the Gulf Stream and North Atlantic Drift are warm currents.

23.  
UPSC Prelims 2023

With reference to the Earth's atmosphere, which one of the following statements is correct?

Correct Answer: C [Infrared waves are largely absorbed by water vapour that is concentrated in the lower atmosphere.]

Explanation:

Water vapour, concentrated in the lower atmosphere, absorbs much of the infrared radiation.

24.  
UPSC Prelims 2013

The annual range of temperature in the interior of the continents is high as compared to coastal areas. What is/are the reason/reasons?

1. Thermal difference between land and water
2. Variation in altitude between continents and oceans
3. Presence of strong winds in the interior
4. Heavy rains in the interior as compared to coasts

Select the correct answer using the code given below:

Correct Answer: A [1 only]

Explanation:

Land heats and cools faster than water, so interiors far from the sea have a much higher annual range than coasts.

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