Which one of the following ocean currents is a cold current?
- A.South Atlantic Drift
- B.Mozambique Current
- C.East Australian Current
- D.Caribbean Current
Correct answer
Explanation
The correct answer is A, South Atlantic Drift. The South Atlantic Drift is part of the West Wind Drift, the cold eastward flow that circles Antarctica in the belt of the westerlies, around 40° to 50° south. Its waters come from high southern latitudes, so it is counted among the cold currents; where it reaches the coast of south-western Africa it feeds the cold Benguela Current. Warm currents generally flow from the equator towards the poles along the eastern coasts of continents, while cold currents flow from high latitudes or along western coasts. Option B is wrong because the Mozambique Current flows south between Mozambique and Madagascar, carrying warm tropical water of the Indian Ocean. Option C is wrong because the East Australian Current carries warm water south from the Coral Sea along Australia's east coast. Option D is wrong because the Caribbean Current is a warm current moving west through the Caribbean Sea, a feeder of the Gulf Stream. Exam tip: cold currents to remember = Labrador, Canary, Benguela, Humboldt (Peru), California, Oyashio, Falkland, West Wind Drift.
Practice Questions
View allWhich town stands on the water divide between the Indus and the Ganga river systems?
- A.Ambala
- B.Dehradun
- C.Haridwar
- D.Agra
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The divide between the two great northern systems does not run along a mountain here but across the almost flat plain of Haryana, and Ambala sits on it, so water falling a little to its west goes to the Ghaggar and the Indus side while water falling to its east…
Read the full explanation →The Tapi river originates near which place in Madhya Pradesh?
- A.Multai in Betul district
- B.Amarkantak in Anuppur district
- C.Janapav in Indore district
- D.Sihawa in Dhamtari district
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It is the second of the two large west flowing peninsular rivers and runs almost parallel to the Narmada, with the Satpura range between them.
Read the full explanation →The Narmada river rises from which of the following?
- A.Amarkantak plateau in Madhya Pradesh
- B.Trimbakeshwar in Maharashtra
- C.Mahabaleshwar in Maharashtra
- D.Brahmagiri range in Karnataka
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The correct answer is A, the Amarkantak plateau in Madhya Pradesh, where the Narmada rises at about one thousand metres and begins its westward journey of some thirteen hundred kilometres through Madhya Pradesh and Gujarat to the Gulf of Khambhat; on the way it makes the Dhuandhar falls and the…
Read the full explanation →Which of the following Indian rivers does not form a delta at its mouth?
- A.Mahanadi
- B.Godavari
- C.Narmada
- D.Krishna
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It flows west through the narrow rift between the Vindhya and the Satpura ranges and opens into the Gulf of Khambhat, where strong tides sweep away the silt, so the river ends in a funnel shaped estuary and not a delta; the Tapi, which also flows west in a rift…
Read the full explanation →The Indus, the Satluj and the Brahmaputra cut deep gorges across the Himalaya because they are older than the present mountains. Such drainage is called
- A.Antecedent drainage
- B.Superimposed drainage
- C.Inland drainage
- D.Deranged drainage
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These rivers were flowing when the Himalaya was still rising, and instead of being turned aside they cut downward as fast as the land rose, leaving the gorges of the Indus near Gilgit, of the Satluj at Shipki and of the Brahmaputra at the great bend in the Dihang.
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