Earth Science Olympiad - Previous Questions 5

Earth Science Olympiad - Previous Questions 5

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1. Earth’s biosphere is protected from cosmic ray bombardment from outer space because it has

ozone layer in the atmosphere
greenhouse gases
thick atmosphere
magnetic field

2. During the glacial times, the average salinity of the ocean

increased relative to the interglacial stage
decreased relative to the interglacial stage
did not change from that in the interglacial stage
initially decreased then increased

3. Inversion layer in the tropical ocean forms during

summer when low salinity surface water is warmed.
summer when high salinity surface water is warmed.
winter when low salinity surface water is cooled.
winter when high salinity surface water is cooled

4. Off Spain in the Atlantic, a distinct water mass can be observed around 1000 m depth in a T-S (temperature-salinity) diagram. This water mass belongs to the

Mediterranean water
Antarctic Intermediate water
Gulf Stream water
Baltic low salinity water

5. El Nino Southern Oscillation (ENSO) is an

ocean process
atmospheric process
ocean-atmosphere process
ocean-atmosphere-land process

6. Earth is a dynamic planet because

there is water on Earth
there is life on Earth
there is heat energy inside the Earth
the Earth rotates and revolves around the Sun

7. Mountain building process generally takes place at

convergent plate boundary
divergent plate boundary
transform faults
interior of a plate

8. Earthquakes do not originate deeper than 700 km because

material is liquid at that depth
there are no rocks at that depth
material is not brittle at that depth
because those earthquakes cannot be detected at the surface

9. Some volcanoes as in Indonesia are explosive in nature while some as in Hawaii are non-explosive, this is because

the larger content of volatiles in the subduction zone related volcanoes makes them explosive
tropical region receives larger heat and humidity making the volcanoes present there explosive
volcanoes in Indonesia are situated within plate while that in Hawaii are at a plate boundary
Hawaiian non-explosive volcanoes are submerged below water while Indonesian volcanoes are above water level.

10. The demarcation of crust and mantle and mantle and core inside the Earth is generally done based on

change in temperature
change in pressure
change in velocities of seismic waves
presence of exotic minerals

Earth Science Olympiad - Previous Questions 4

Earth Science Olympiad - Previous Questions 4

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1. Which of the followings is not a stable isotope:

¹²C
¹³C
¹⁴C
¹⁵N

2. Smaller phytoplankton has advantage over bigger phytoplankton in oligotrophic (less nutrient) waters, because:

Surface area of smaller phytoplankton is less than the bigger phytoplankton
volume of smaller phytoplankton is less than the bigger phytoplankton phytoplankton
surface area: volume ratio of smaller phytoplankton is less than the bigger phytoplankton
surface area: volume ratio of smaller phytoplankton is more than the bigger phytoplankton

3. Pressure at 750 m ocean depth is

750 bar
750 mbar
76 bar
75 mbar

4. Oceanic Mixed Layer Depth (MLD) increases when

rainfall occurs
sea surface temperature increase
wind speed over the ocean increases
primary production increases

5. Approximately how much fraction of the surface organic matter production reaches to the sea floor:

0.5
0.25
0.1
0.01

6. Pycnocline refers to

vertical salinity gradient
vertical temperature gradient
vertical density gradient
vertical nutrient gradient

7. Coriolis force

is applied on the objects only at the poles
zero at the equator
decreases with increasing speed
zero at the poles

8. Geostrophic flow conditions occur when

Coriolis force is zero
Pressure gradient force is zero
Pressure gradient force is balanced by Coriolis force
Pressure gradient force and Coriolis force are in imbalance

9. The major atmospheric constituents that are homogeneously distributed in the lower atmosphere are

N₂, O₂, N₂, O
N₂,O₂,H₂
N₂, O₂, CO₂
N₂, O₂, Ar

10. Highest mean annual temperatures is observed

over the tropics during the summer in respective hemispheres
near the tropics over the oceans
at the equator over land
at the equator over oceans

Earth Science Olympiad - Previous Questions 3

Earth Science Olympiad - Previous Questions 3

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1. Arrange the following in increasing order of grain size a. Sand b. Boulder c. Pebble d. Silt

a,c,d,b
b,c,a,d
d,a,c,b
d,a,b,c

2. Which of the following sedimentary structure can be used as Plaeocurrent direction indicator

Rainprints
Mud cracks
Flute marks
Symmetric ripples

3. A right side up sedimentary sequence will have

Coarse grains at the top
Mixed grain size throughout the sequence
Finest at the top
Fossils at the top

4. Symmetric folds with straight limbs and sharp hinges are called

Kink folds
Chevron folds
Ptygmatic folds
Recumbent folds

5. Lithospheric plates are composed of

Crust
Mantle
Crust and Mantle both
Crust mantle and core

6. During evaporation, ocean

gets fresher
gets saltier
salt concentration does not change
salt concentration doubles

7. Deep ocean circulation is driven by:

Winds
temperature and salinity
Coriolis force
Gravitational force

8. Density of mean ocean water

is maximum at 8℃
is maximum at 4℃
is minimum at 4℃
does not show an anomalous behavior

9. Which of the following colors penetrate deepest in the open ocean

Red
Green
Blue
Yellow

10. Oxygen concentration at the intermediate ocean (between 200-500 m) is lower in the Pacific than that in the Atlantic, because

Pacific water is older than Atlantic
Pacific water is newer than Atlantic
Pacific is productive than Atlantic
Deep water of the Pacific is warm

Earth Science Olympiad - Previous Questions 2

Earth Science Olympiad - Previous Questions 2

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1. Chemical weathering of rocks will produce

Granite
Limestone
Bauxite
Sandstone

2. Most appropriate example of Geomagnetic reversal is imprinted on the

Rift basins
Orogenic belts
MORs
Trenches

3. In case of a structural basin, dips are

Centripetal
Centrifugal
Vertical
Horizontal

4. The ability of a rock to transmit water is known as

Infiltration
Percolation
Porosity
Permeability

5. Cooling joints are …………….. in cross-section

Hexagonal
Circular
Rectangular
Pentagonal

6. Which of the following process is not associated with diagenesis

Albitization
Burial
Cementation
Recrystallization

7. Isoclinal folds have an interlimb angle of

80-90
50-60
0-10
0-40

8. Continental drift theory was given by

Harry Hess
A. Wagner
Vine and Mathews
W. Condie

9. Meandering of rivers takes place in the

Young stage
Mature stage
Old stage
Both (a and b)

10. The planet Mercury is nearest to the sun, its revolution period is

66 days
77 days
88 days
99 days



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Earth Science Olympiad - Previous Questions 1

Earth Science Olympiad - Previous Questions 1

The questions are from the previous year International Earth Science Olympiad question papers with solutions and explanations. 

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1. Rift basin is formed by which of the following crustal processes

Compression
Extension
Both a & b
Thrust

2. Slicken sides are a type of

Foliation
Bedding
Lineation
Fault plane

3. Repetition of beds on a geological map may be due to

Folding
Erosion
Unconformity
(a and b) both

4. Which of the following is associated with fluvial system

Mud crack
Ripple marks
Sand dunes
Hammada

5. Which show highest strain level value among all the Himalayan thrusts

Main Boundary Thrust
Main Central Thrust
Main Frontal Thrust
Panjal Thrust

6. Primary foliation forms

During crystallisation of magma
After crystallisation of a magma
During folding
During jointing

7. If you are flying a plane and you look down at the landscape, you are seeing a view of the earth

Map
Cross-sectional
Lateral
Horizontal

8. Which of the following tectonic forces tend to push the objects in such a way so that they slide past one another

Tensional
Compressive
Shearing
Extension

9. At convergent plate boundaries one would expect to find

Folds
Faults
Folds and faults
Neither folds nor faults

10. Upfolds or arches of layered rocks are called

Antiforms
Faults
Synforms
Unconformities