Consider the following statements:
- Statement-I: The atmosphere is heated more by incoming solar radiation than by terrestrial radiation.
- Statement-II: Carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases in the atmosphere are good absorbers of long wave radiation.
Which one of the following is correct in respect of the above statements?
Answer & explanation
Answer: (d) Statement-I is incorrect, but Statement-II is correct
The atmosphere lets most short-wave sunlight pass through; the Earth's surface absorbs it and then radiates long-wave (terrestrial) energy, which carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases absorb. So the air is heated mainly from below by the Earth, not directly by the Sun: Statement-I is wrong, Statement-II is right.
- ✗ Statement-I The atmosphere is largely transparent to incoming short-wave solar radiation. It is heated indirectly, from below, by the long-wave radiation the warmed Earth gives out.
- ✓ Statement-II Terrestrial radiation is long-wave, and carbon dioxide and the other greenhouse gases absorb it well. This is the basis of the greenhouse effect.
Remember · Sun heats the ground (short wave); the ground heats the air (long wave, terrestrial radiation). Greenhouse gases trap that long-wave energy.
📘 Read it in NCERT: Class 11 Fundamentals of Physical Geography, Ch 8 (practise this chapter) · Class 11 Fundamentals of Physical Geography, Ch 8 (practise this chapter)
Sources
- NCERT Class 11 · Fundamentals of Physical Geography, Chapter 8 “The long wave radiation is absorbed by the atmospheric gases particularly by carbon dioxide and the other green house gases. Thus, the atmosphere is indirectly heated by the earth's radiation.”
- NCERT Class 11 · Fundamentals of Physical Geography, Chapter 8 “The atmosphere is largely transparent to short wave solar radiation.”
Question and answer: UPSC's official GS Paper I (2024, Series A) — paper ↗ · answer key ↗. Explanation: Minimalist IAS, checked 30 Sept 2026 (how we verify). ·