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UPSC Previous Year Questions (Prelims): Introduction to Earth & Universe | Geography for UPSC CSE PDF Download

Q.1. On June 21 every year, which of the following latitude(s) experience(s) a sunlight of more than 12 hours? (2024)
1. Equator
2. Tropic of Cancer
3. Tropic of Capricorn
4. Arctic Circle
Select the correct answer using the code given below:
(a) 1 only
(b) 2 only
(c) 3 and 4
(d) 2 and 4

View Answer

Correct Answer is Option (d)

On June 21st, the Northern Hemisphere is tilted toward the sun.
The sun's rays hit directly on the Tropic of Cancer.
This means that these areas get more heat.
At the Tropic of Cancer, there are more than 12 hours of sunlight.
The North Pole is also tilted toward the sun, causing places beyond the Arctic Circle to have continuous daylight for about six months.
Since a large part of the Northern Hemisphere is receiving light from the sun, it is summer in the regions north of the equator.
On this day, the longest day and the shortest night occur in these areas.

Q.2. In the northern hemisphere, the longest day of the year normally occurs in the: (2022)
(a) First half of the month of June
(b) Second half of the month of June
(c) First half of the month of July
(d) Second half of the month of July

View Answer

Correct Answer is Option (b)

The longest day of 2021 for people living north of the Equator is June 21.
This day is known as the summer solstice, marking the longest day of the summer season.
The summer solstice occurs when the sun is directly over the Tropic of Cancer, specifically at the latitude of 23.5 degrees north.
For those in India, this event will take place around 9:02 AM on Monday (Indian Standard Time).
During the solstice, the Earth's axis—the imaginary line the planet spins around—is tilted so that the North Pole is angled towards the sun, while the South Pole is turned away from it.

Q.3. On 21st June, the Sun (2019)
(a) does not set below the horizon at the Arctic Circle
(b) does not set below the horizon at Antarctic Circle
(c) shines vertically overhead at noon on the Equator
(d) shines vertically overhead at the Tropic of Capricorn

View Answer

Correct Answer is Option (b)

June 21 marks the date of the summer solstice in the Northern Hemisphere.
During the summer solstice, this hemisphere has the longest day of the year.
At the North Pole, this results in continuous daylight all day long.
On June 21, the sun remains above the horizon and does not set in the Arctic Circle.
The summer solstice in the Southern Hemisphere occurs between December 20 and December 23.

Q.4. What explains the eastward flow of the equatorial countercurrent? (2015 - I)
(a) The Earth's rotation on its axis
(b) Convergence of the two equatorial currents
(c) Difference in salinity of water
(d) Occurrence of the belt of calm near the equator

View Answer

Correct Answer is Option (a)
The Earth's rotation on its axis explains the eastward flow of the equatorial counter-current. If the earth would have been rotating east to west, the piled-up water would have come down on the west side. Therefore, essentially it's the earth's rotation that explains the eastward flow of equatorial counter current.

Q.5. "Each day is more or less the same, the morning is clear and bright with a sea breeze; as the Sun climbs high in the sky, heat mounts up, dark clouds form, then the rain comes with thunder and lightning. But rain is soon over." Which of the following regions is described in the above passage? (2015 - I)
(a) Savannah
(b) Equatorial
(c) Monsoon
(d) Mediterranean

View Answer

Correct Answer is Option (b)
The passage points out the equatorial region.

Q.6. Consider the following pairs: (2013 - I)

Electromagnetic radiation
Geothermal energy
Gravitational force
Plate movements
Rotation of the earth
Revolution of the earth

Which of the above are responsible for bringing dynamic changes on the surface of the earth?
(a) 1, 2, 3 and 4 only
(b) 1, 3, 5 and 6 only
(c) 2, 4, 5 and 6 only
(d) 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6

View Answer

Correct Answer is Option (d)
From electromagnetic radiation to the revolution of the earth, everything is responsible for bringing dynamic changes to the surface of the earth. For example, Electromagnetic radiation brings changes in the field of microwaves, wavelengths of radio, UV rays, infrared rays, X rays, and gamma rays. Geothermal energy is the heat received from the earth’s core. This heat continuously flows outward. It transfers to the surrounding layers of rock, the mantle. When temperature and pressure become very high some mantle rocks melt becoming magma. It then either comes out as lava or heats up the nearby rocks and water which comes out as hot springs or geysers. Gravitational force is constantly working on all physical bodies. It is giving weights to objects with mass and causes them to fall to the ground when dropped. Plate movement is a dynamic change on the surface of the earth. It explains many aspects of the interrelationship of volcanoes, earthquakes, climate change, and the evolution of life itself. Everything about our planet is related either directly or indirectly to plate tectonics. Rotation causes day and night. Revolution causes seasons, change in the length of day and night.

Q.7. On the planet earth, most of the freshwater exists as ice caps and glaciers. Out of the remaining freshwater, the largest proportion (2013 - I)
(a) is found in the atmosphere as moisture and clouds
(b) is found in freshwater lakes and rivers
(c) exists as groundwater
(d) exists as soil moisture

View Answer

Correct Answer is Option (c)
Out of all the water on Earth, saline water in oceans, seas, and saline groundwater make up about 97% of it. Only 2.5 - 2.75% is fresh water, including 1.75-2% frozen in glaciers, ice, and snow, 0.5 - 0.75% as fresh groundwater and soil moisture, and less than 0.01% of it as surface water in lakes, Swamps, and rivers.

Q.8. Variations in the length of daytime and nighttime from season to season are due to (2013 - I)
(a) the earth’s rotation on its axis
(b) the earth’s revolution around the sun in an elliptical manner
(c) latitudinal position of the place
(d) revolution of the earth on a tilted axis.

View Answer

Correct Answer is Option (d)
Variations in the length of daytime and nighttime from season to season are due to the revolution of the earth on a tilted axis.

Q.9. Consider the following factors: (2012 - I)

Rotation of the Earth
Air pressure and wind
Density of ocean water
Revolution of the Earth

Which of the above factors influence the ocean currents?
(a) 1 and 2 only
(b) 1, 2 and 3
(c) 1 and 4
(d) 2, 3 and 4

View Answer

Correct Answer is Option (b)

Rotation of the Earth
Air pressure and wind
Density of ocean water.

Revolution has no impact on ocean currents.

Q.10. Which of the following is/are cited by the scientists as evidence/evidences for the continued expansion of the universe? (2012 - I)

Detection of microwaves in space
Observation of redshift phenomenon in space
Movement of asteroids in space
Occurrence of supernova explosions in space

Select the correct answer using the codes given below:
(a) 1 and 2
(b) 2 only
(c) 1, 3 and 4
(d) None of the above can be cited as evidence

View Answer

Correct Answer is Option (a)
The cosmic microwave background (CMB) is the thermal radiation left over from the "Big Bang". The CMB has well explained as radiation left over from an early stage in the development of the universe and its discovery is considered a landmarks test of the Big Bang model of the universe. Redshift and Blueshift describe how light changes as objects in space (such as stars or galaxies) move closer or farther away from us. The concept is key to charting the universe's expansion.

Q.11. What is the difference between asteroids and comets? (2011 - I)

Asteroids are small rocky planetoids, while comets are formed of frozen gases held together by rocky and metallic material.
Asteroids are found mostly between the orbits of Jupiter and Mars, while comets are found mostly between Venus and Mercury.
Comets show a perceptible glowing tail, while asteroids do not.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
(a) 1 and 2 only
(b) 1 and 3 only
(c) 3 only
(d) 1, 2 and 3

View Answer

Correct Answer is Option (b)
Comets found beyond Nepture i.e. Kuiper belt. Asteroids are tiny planetary bodies revolving around the sun between the orbits of Jupiter and Mars. While comets are made up of small icy particles and Neteoric fragments.

Q.12. Consider the following statements: (2010)

On the planet Earth, the freshwater available for use amounts to about less than 1% of the total water found.
Of the total freshwater found on the planet Earth 95% is bound up in polar ice caps and glaciers.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
(a) 1 only
(b) 2 only
(c) Both 1 and 2
(d) Neither 1 nor 2

View Answer

Correct Answer is Option (a)
On the earth, the freshwater available for use amounts to about less than 1% of the total water, and its 68.7% is bound up in polar ice and glaciers.

Q.13. In the structure of planet Earth, below the mantle, the core is mainly made up of which one of the following? (2009)
(a) Aluminium
(b) Chromium
(c) Iron
(d) Silicon

View Answer

Correct Answer is Option (c)
The core of the earth is made up of nickle and iron.

Q.14. Which one of the following planets has the largest number of natural satellites or moons? (2009)
(a) Jupiter
(b) Mars
(c) Saturn
(d) Venus

View Answer

Correct Answer is Option (a)
Jupiter has maximum moons accounting for 63 whereas Satun has 61, Mars has 2 and Venus has none.

Q.15. In order of their distances from the Sun, which of the following planets lie between Mars and Uranus? (2008)
(a) Earth and Jupiter
(b) Jupiter and Saturn
(c) Saturn and Earth
(d) Saturn and Neptune

View Answer

Correct Answer is Option (b)
Jupiter and Saturn are located between Mars and Uranus.

Q.16. What is the average distance (approximate) between the sun and the earth? (2007)
(a) 70 × 105 km
(b) 100 × 105 km
(c) 110 × 106 km
(d) 150 × 106 km

View Answer

Correct Answer is Option (d)
The actual average distance between the sun and the earth is 152 × 106 km which is near 150 × 106 km.

Q.17. Assertion (A): To orbit around the Sun the planet Mars takes lesser time than the time taken by the earth.
Reason (R): The diameter of the planet Mars is less than that of earth. (2006)
(a) Both ‘A’ and ‘R’ are individually true and ‘R’ is the correct explanation of ‘A’.
(b) Both ‘A’ and ‘R’ are individually true but ‘R’ is not the correct explanation of ‘A’.
(c) ‘A’ is true but ‘R’ is false.
(d) ‘A’ is false but ‘R’ is true.

View Answer

Correct Answer is Option (d)
A is incorrect as the mars revolution around the sun takes 1.88 years of Earth's revolution. The diameter of the earth is almost double to the diameter of mars.

Q.18. Consider the following statements: (2005)

The Axis of the earth's magnetic field is inclined at 23 and a half to the geographic axis of the earth.
The earth's magnetic pole in the Northern Hemisphere is located on a Peninsula in Northern Canada.
The earth's magnetic equator passes through Thumba in South India. Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

(a) 1, 2 and 3
(b) 2 and 3
(c) 2 only
(d) 3 only

View Answer

Correct Answer is Option (b)
Earth's magnetic field is inclined between –90° to 90°. In the northern hemisphere, it points downwards and upward in the southern hemisphere.

Q.19. Assertion (A): Th e same face of the moon is always presented to the earth.
Reason (R): The moon rotates about its own axis in 23 and half days which is about the same time that it takes to orbit the earth. (2005)
(a) Both A and R are true and R is the correct explanation of A
(b) Both A and R are true but R is NOT a correct explanation of A
(c) A is true but R is false
(d) A is false but R is true

View Answer

Correct Answer is Option (c)
The moon rotates about its own axis in 27.322 days. When the Moon first formed, its rotational speed and orbit were very different than they are now. Over time, the Earth's gravitational field gradually slowed the Moon's rotation until the orbital period and the rotational speed stabilized, making one side of the moon always face the Earth.

Q.20. Among the following which planet takes maximum time for one revolution around the Sun? (2003)
(a) Earth
(b) Jupiter
(c) Mars
(d) Venus

View Answer

Correct Answer is Option (b)
Jupiter takes maximum time for one revolution i.e., 11 year 86 days. Mars take 687 days, Venus takes 267 days.

Q.18. Which one of the following stat ements is correct with reference to our solar system? (2002)
(a) The earth is the densest of all the planets in our solar system
(b) The predominant element in the composition of earth is silicon
(c) The sun contains 75 percent of the mass of the solar system
(d) The diameter of the sun is 190 times that of the earth

View Answer

Correct Answer is Option (a)
The earth is the densest of all the planet. Density of Earth is 5.52, Venus–5.50, Mercury 5.27, Mars – 3.95, Jupiter and Saturn – 0.69, Uranus – 1.27

Q.21. If the stars are seen to rise perpendicular to the horizon by an observer, he is located on the: (2001)
(a) Equator
(b) Tropic of Cancer
(c) South Pole
(d) North Pole

View Answer

Correct Answer is Option (a)
If the stars are seen to rise perpendicular to the horizon by an observer then the observer is at the equator because the celestial equator is an imaginary circle around the sky directly above the earth's equator. It is always 90º from the pole. All the stars rotate in a path that is parallel to the celestial equator.

Q.22. Who amongst the following was the first to state that the earth was spherical? (2001)
(a) Aristotle
(b) Copernicus
(c) Ptolemy
(d) Strabo

View Answer

Correct Answer is Option (a)
Aristotle in 340 B.C first stated that the earth was spherical in his book “On the Heaven”

Q.23. Which one of the following scholars suggested the earth's origin from gases and dust particles? (1999)
(a) James Jeans
(b) H. Alfven
(c) F. Hoyle
(d) O. Schmidt

View Answer

Correct Answer is Option (d)
O. Schmidt in 1943 gave Interstellar Dust Hypothesis for the origin of the earth and solar system.

Q.24. Consider the following statements regarding asteroids: (1998)

Asteroids are rocky debris of varying size orbiting the sun
Most of the asteroids are small but some have diameter as large and 1000 km
The orbit of asteroids lies between the orbits of Jupiter and Saturn

Of these statements:
(a) 1, 2 and 3 are correct
(b) 2 and 3 are correct
(c) 1 and 2 are correct
(d) 1 and 3 are correct

View Answer

Correct Answer is Option (c)
The asteroids are group of small pieces of rocky debris of different sizes. Some asteroids are small and some asteroids even have diameter 1000 km. The asteroids revolve between Mars and Jupiter.

Q.25. Which one of the following conditions is most relevant for the presence of life on Mars? (1997)
(a) Atmospheric composition
(b) Thermal conditions
(c) Occurrence of ice caps and frozen water
(d) Occurrence of ozone

View Answer

Correct Answer is Option (c)
Mars is the only planet with similar day time temperatures and an atmosphere similar to earth. The most relevant condition for presence of life on Mars is occurrence of ice caps and frozen water.

Q.26. Which one of the following stars is nearest to the Earth? (1997)
(a) Polaris
(b) Alpha Centauri
(c) Sun
(d) Sirius

View Answer

Correct Answer is Option (c)
Sun is the star nearest to the earth. It is 150 million kilometer away from earth. Sun has temperatures of over 15 million ºC.

The document UPSC Previous Year Questions (Prelims): Introduction to Earth & Universe | Geography for UPSC CSE is a part of the UPSC Course Geography for UPSC CSE.

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FAQs on UPSC Previous Year Questions (Prelims): Introduction to Earth & Universe - Geography for UPSC CSE

1. What is the significance of the Earth's structure in the study of geology?

Ans. The Earth's structure is crucial in geology as it helps us understand the composition, behavior, and processes of the Earth's materials. Key layers include the crust, mantle, outer core, and inner core, each contributing to phenomena such as plate tectonics, earthquakes, and volcanism.

2. How do the Earth's movements affect its climate and environment?

Ans. The Earth's movements, including rotation and revolution, significantly influence its climate and environment. The rotation creates day and night, while the revolution around the sun causes seasonal changes. Additionally, tectonic movements can lead to changes in landforms, ocean currents, and weather patterns.

3. What are the main types of rocks, and how do they form?

Ans. The main types of rocks are igneous, sedimentary, and metamorphic. Igneous rocks form from cooled magma or lava; sedimentary rocks develop from the accumulation of sediments; and metamorphic rocks arise from the alteration of existing rocks due to heat and pressure.

4. What role does the atmosphere play in protecting life on Earth?

Ans. The atmosphere acts as a protective layer for life on Earth by filtering harmful solar radiation, regulating temperature, and providing essential gases for respiration and photosynthesis. It also helps in weather formation and maintaining the water cycle.

5. How do celestial bodies influence life on Earth?

Ans. Celestial bodies, particularly the sun and moon, influence life on Earth through their gravitational effects and energy output. The sun drives photosynthesis and climate patterns, while the moon affects ocean tides, which are essential for various ecosystems and marine life.

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