Geography · Environmental Studies

Natural Hazards and Disasters

1,357 Questions

Natural hazards and disasters involve the study of extreme natural events like earthquakes, floods, and cyclones, alongside their management and mitigation strategies. This geography and environmental studies topic is heavily tested in civil services and state public service examinations. Use these questions to prepare for inquiries on disaster response, community recovery, and tremor causes.

Earthquake and tremor causesDisaster management activitiesFlood management mythsCyclone and severe weatherPost-disaster health problemsCommunity disaster response

Natural Hazards and Disasters Questions

Multiple choice

April 10 marks the 200th anniversary of

Directions: Read the passage and answer the question that follows.

Two hundred years after the biggest volcanic blast in recorded history, scientists have ranked the countries most at risk of a deadly volcanic eruption.
Today (April 10) marks the 200th anniversary of the 1815 Tambora eruption in Indonesia. The enormous explosion changed global climate, causing a "year without a summer" in the Northern Hemisphere. Sulfur dioxide from Mount Tambora lingered in the atmosphere for several years, cooling the planet and triggering crop failures, famine and human disease pandemics in North America, Europe and Asia.
"People were eating cats and rats," said Stephen Self, a volcanologist at the University of California, Berkeley and an expert on the Tambora eruption.

  1. 1815 Tambora eruption

  2. 1915 Tambora eruption

  3. 2015 Tambora eruption

  4. None of these
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
A Correct answer
Explanation

Option (1) is the correct answer. It is given in the first line of the second paragraph.

Multiple choice

The tropical storm that caused flooding in Southern Belize in Central America and Mexico in 2008 is termed as

  1. Fengshen

  2. Arthur

  3. Tsunami

  4. Ike
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
B Correct answer
Explanation

Tropical Storm Arthur was the first tropical cyclone of the 2008 Atlantic hurricane season. It formed in late May 2008 and caused significant flooding and damage in southern Belize and parts of Mexico. 'Fengshen' and 'Ike' were also 2008 storms but affected different regions (Philippines and Caribbean/US respectively). A tsunami is not a tropical storm but a seismic ocean wave.

Multiple choice

Which among the following calamities occurs in Bay of Bengal?

  1. Tornado

  2. Willy-Willy

  3. Cyclone

  4. None of these
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
C Correct answer
Explanation

Cyclones occur in the Bay of Bengal. Tornadoes are rare in India, while Willy-Willy is a term for tropical cyclones in the Australia/Western Pacific region. The Bay of Bengal is prone to severe tropical cyclones, especially during pre-monsoon and post-monsoon seasons.

Multiple choice

Cyclones caused the flood in the

  1. hilly areas

  2. coastal areas

  3. north plains

  4. None of these
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
B Correct answer
Explanation

Cyclones cause floods primarily in coastal areas because these regions are where cyclones make landfall, bringing intense rainfall and storm surges. The coastal terrain and proximity to the sea make these areas most vulnerable to the massive water inundation that accompanies cyclonic systems.

Multiple choice

Tsunamis are produced by

  1. shrinking of the earth's crust

  2. cyclones

  3. submarine earthquake

  4. tides
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
C Correct answer
Explanation

Tsunamis are most commonly produced by submarine earthquakes that suddenly displace large volumes of water. While tides, cyclones, and crustal shrinking can affect ocean water, they do not generate the massive, fast-moving waves characteristic of tsunamis.

Multiple choice

Tsunamis are huge sea waves caused by

  1. earthquakes

  2. volcanoes

  3. winds

  4. icebergs
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
A Correct answer
Explanation

Tsunamis are primarily caused by undersea earthquakes that displace large volumes of water, creating massive waves. They can also be triggered by volcanic eruptions, landslides, and meteorite impacts, but earthquakes are the most common cause. Winds cause normal waves, not tsunamis.

Multiple choice

Which of the following is/are caused by down draughts?

  1. Squall

  2. Microburst

  3. Gust

  4. All of the above
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
D Correct answer
Explanation

Down draughts are downward-moving air currents that can cause various weather phenomena. Squalls are sudden strong winds, microbursts are small-scale intense downdrafts, and gusts are brief increases in wind speed. All are caused by down draughts in thunderstorms.