Places in News Current Affairs MCQs

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A magnitude 5.5 earthquake recently struck the North Island region of New Zealand. The North Island is one of the two main islands of New Zealand in the South Pacific Ocean. It is separated from the South Island by the Cook Strait. The island covers about 113,729 square kilometres, making it the 14th largest island in the world. It is smaller than the South Island but has a much larger population.

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Recently, Kruger National Park was temporarily closed to day visitors due to severe flooding after prolonged heavy rainfall. Kruger National Park is South Africa’s largest and oldest national park, globally famous for wildlife conservation. It is located in northeastern South Africa across Limpopo and Mpumalanga provinces, bordering Mozambique and Zimbabwe. The park was first proclaimed as Sabi Game Reserve in 1898 and became a national park in 1926.

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A Chinese reconnaissance drone recently flew over the Taiwan-controlled Pratas Islands in the northern South China Sea, which Taiwan described as “provocative and irresponsible.” The Pratas Islands, also called the Dongsha Islands, consist of three islands, with Dongsha Island being the only one above sea level; the other two are submerged. The islands have a circular atoll structure made mainly of clastic coral and reef flats.

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Researchers found the world’s oldest known rock art, a painted human hand outline, inside a cave on Muna Island, Indonesia, dated to at least 67,800 years ago. Muna Island is located in Southeast Sulawesi province of Indonesia and covers about 1,704 square kilometres. The island has a hilly landscape rising up to about 445 metres, with teak forests in the north and northeast. Muna Island is known for rich culture, natural beauty, forests, and clean beaches

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Recently, North Korea fired a ballistic missile towards the Sea of Japan, raising regional security concerns. The Sea of Japan, also called the East Sea, is a marginal sea of the western Pacific Ocean. It lies between Japan and Sakhalin Island on the eastern side and Russia, North Korea, and South Korea on the western side. It connects to the East China Sea through the Tsushima Strait and the Korea Strait. In the north, it links with the Sea of Okhotsk through the La Perouse Strait and the Tatar Strait.

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Indian mountaineer Kabak Yano from Arunachal Pradesh successfully summited Mount Aconcagua in Argentina. The climb is part of her ambitious 7-Summit Mountaineering Expedition. Mt Aconcagua, located in the Andes of Argentina, is the highest peak in South America and outside Asia, standing at 6,962 meters. The mountain is of volcanic origin but is not currently active.

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The Sansha Yongle Blue Hole, known as the Dragon Hole, is a massive underwater sinkhole in the South China Sea studied for over a decade. Blue holes are deep, steep underwater cavities formed in limestone areas and later filled by rising sea levels. Dragon Hole is the deepest known underwater sinkhole in the world at about 301.19 meters, deeper than Dean’s Blue Hole in the Bahamas. It lies around 25 kilometers from Discovery Reef and is called the “eye” of the South China Sea by local fishermen. The hole is almost vertical, with 130 meters width at the surface and 36 meters at the bottom.

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Gilbert Hill recently came into news after industrialist Anand Mahindra highlighted it in a social media post. The discussion increased awareness about its rare volcanic origin and heritage significance. Gilbert Hill is a 200-foot high monolith of black basalt rock located in Andheri, Mumbai, Maharashtra. It is one of the oldest basalt rock formations, formed about 66 million years ago during the Mesozoic era. It was created by volcanic eruptions that formed the Deccan Traps and marked the end of the dinosaur age. It is a rare volcanic column, with only three similar formations worldwide. The other two are Devil’s Tower in the United States of America (USA) and Giant’s Causeway in Northern Ireland.

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Mount Kanlaon, also called Kanlaon Volcano, recently erupted and released heavy ash and smoke over Negros Island in the Philippines, leading to safety warnings. It is a stratovolcano located on Negros Island, Philippines, and is the tallest peak in the Visayas region, about 2,465 metres above sea level. It is one of the active volcanoes of the Philippines and forms part of the Pacific Ring of Fire. It has many pyroclastic cones and craters with a broad caldera and crater lake at the summit. Its slopes have lava flows, lahar deposits and rich biodiversity, and act as major river headwaters.

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Taftan Volcano in southeastern Iran has risen about 3.5 inches (9 centimetre) in last 10 months. It is a stratovolcano located near Iran–Pakistan border. It is the tallest mountain in southeastern Iran. The volcano has two summits named Narkuh and Matherkuh. It contains an active hydrothermal system. It is the only active volcano in Makran continental volcanic arc. The arc is formed due to subduction of Arabian Plate beneath Eurasian Plate.