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Prelims · Geography · 16 questions

Oceans

Every UPSC Prelims question on this topic, 2016–2026, newest first. Tap an option to check yourself; the answer and explanation open below it.

Oceans questions per year: 2016: 0, 2017: 0, 2018: 1, 2019: 0, 2020: 1, 2021: 3, 2022: 1, 2023: 0, 2024: 1, 2025: 0, 2026: 1 Asked in 6 of 11 years · most in 2021 (3)

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महासागर औसत तापमान (Ocean Mean Temperature/OMT) के संदर्भ में, निम्नलिखित में से कौन-सा/से कथन सही है/हैं ?

  1. 1.OMT को 26°C समताप रेखा की गहराई तक मापा जाता है जो जनवरी – मार्च में हिन्द महासागर के दक्षिण-पश्चिम में 129 मीटर पर होती है ।
  2. 2.OMT, जो जनवरी – मार्च में एकत्रित किया जाता है उसे यह निर्धारित करने के लिए प्रयोग किया जा सकता है कि मानसून में वर्षा की मात्रा एक निश्चित दीर्घकालीन औसत वर्षा से कम होगी या अधिक ।

नीचे दिए गए कूट का प्रयोग कर सही उत्तर चुनिए :

Read this question in English

With reference to Ocean Mean Temperature (OMT), which of the following statements is/are correct?

1. OMT is measured up to a depth of 26°C isotherm which is 129 meters in the south-western Indian Ocean during January – March.

2. OMT collected during January – March can be used in assessing whether the amount of rainfall in monsoon will be less or more than a certain long-term mean.

Select the correct answer using the code given below:

(a) 1 only · (b) 2 only · (c) Both 1 and 2 · (d) Neither 1 nor 2

उत्तर और व्याख्या · explanation in English

Answer: (b) केवल 2

Statement 2 is right and statement 1 is wrong. OMT (the average temperature of the ocean from the surface down to the 26°C isotherm) in the south-western Indian Ocean during January–March helps predict whether the coming monsoon rainfall will be above or below average, but the 26°C isotherm there lies at about 59 m, not 129 m.

  • ✗ 1. OMT is the mean temperature of the layer from the surface down to the 26°C isotherm, which is the first half of the statement. But the January–March climatic mean depth of that isotherm in the south-western Indian Ocean is about 59 m, not 129 m.
  • ✓ 2. The January–March south-western Indian Ocean OMT is a better qualitative predictor of Indian summer monsoon rainfall than sea surface temperature; it correctly signals above-average or below-average rain about 80% of the time, against 60% for SST.

Remember · OMT = mean temperature from the surface to the 26°C isotherm; south-western Indian Ocean OMT in January–March forecasts monsoon rain (isotherm depth about 59 m there).

Sources

Question and answer: UPSC's official GS Paper I (2020, Series A) — paper ↗ · answer key ↗. Explanation: Minimalist IAS, checked 30 Sept 2026 (how we verify). Permalink ·

The Syllabus X-Ray of this topic

2 of its 6 sub-topics are High

0 Core · 2 High · 2 Steady · 2 Rare

  • HighOcean temperature, currents & salinity · 3 questions
  • HighLaw of the sea & deep-sea exploration · 3 questions

The X-Ray ranks all 928 sub-topics of the UPSC syllabus by what UPSC has asked since 2016. The 60 Prelims Core sub-topics are behind 51% of Prelims questions.

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