Places in News Current Affairs MCQs

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Recently, a major wildfire broke out near the main town of Chios Island in the eastern Aegean Sea, with over 100 firefighters and water-dropping aircraft working to control the flames. Chios is a Greek island located in the Aegean Sea, just 8 kilometres off the western coast of Turkey. It is the fifth-largest island in Greece. Chios is known for producing mastic gum and is often called “the Mastic Island.”

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Recently, a satellite image showed Alaska’s Iliamna Volcano “ready to rumble,” following a rise in earthquakes on its slopes, drawing scientific attention. Iliamna Volcano is located in southwest Alaska, United States, within the Chigmit Mountains of Lake Clark National Park and Preserve. It is a stratovolcano, known for its steep shape and occasional explosive eruptions. The volcano is made up of andesite lava flows and pyroclastic rocks over Jurassic-era granite.

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Recently, researchers discovered a buried ancient forest under the Falkland Islands, which grew before humans or sheep ever arrived. The Falkland Islands, also called the Malvinas Islands, is an internally self-governing overseas territory of the United Kingdom in the South Atlantic Ocean. It lies about 480 kilometers northeast of South America’s southern tip and east of the Strait of Magellan. The islands include East Falkland, West Falkland, and 776 smaller islands, separated by the Falkland Strait.

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Recently, the Wandan mud volcano in Taiwan erupted, sending bubbling mud into the air while locals set the escaping gases on fire with burning rags. A mud volcano is a small cone of mud and clay, usually less than a few meters high. It forms from hot water mixed with fine sediment, which either flows gently like lava or bursts out like a fountain due to volcanic gas and boiling water. The craters are shallow and erupt mud on and off, rebuilding cones that erode easily. Mud volcanoes, also called mud domes or sedimentary volcanoes, release gases like methane, carbon dioxide, and nitrogen along with often salty or acidic water.

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Recently, Japan’s Mount Shinmoedake erupted, sending a huge ash plume into the sky. Mount Shinmoedake is an active stratovolcano on Kyushu Island in Japan. It is part of the Kirishima mountain range in Kagoshima Prefecture. The volcano stands 1420.8 meters above sea level. It shows frequent eruptions and unique geological formations.

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Over 1,000 earthquakes have shaken the Tokara Islands in southern Japan in the past two weeks, creating an unprecedented seismic situation. The Tokara Islands are a small archipelago located south of Kyushu and north of the Amami Islands in Japan. They are also called the Toshima Islands, covered administratively by Toshima-mura (Toshima Village). The archipelago includes 7 inhabited islands (e.g., Kuchinoshima, Nakanoshima, Suwanosejima) and 5 uninhabited islands (e.g., Gajajima, Kogajajima).

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Recently, heavy rainfall caused severe flooding and damage in central Texas, especially along the Guadalupe River. The Guadalupe River is located in Texas, United States. Guadalupe River is a spring-fed river that starts from the North and South Forks in Kerr County, Texas. It flows into San Antonio Bay, which connects to the Gulf of Mexico. The river basin includes Canyon Reservoir and Edwards Aquifer in the Balcones Fault Zone, San Antonio portion. The area is known as “Flash Flood Alley” due to frequent flash floods.

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Recently, Mount Rainier in Washington, United States, experienced over 300 small earthquakes, marking the most significant seismic activity since 2009, as reported by the United States Geological Survey (USGS). Mount Rainier is the highest mountain in Washington state, standing at 4,392 metres. It covers 260 square kilometers and has the largest single-mountain glacier system in the U.S. outside Alaska. It is an active stratovolcano formed by lava flows that began about one million years ago. Its last eruption occurred around 150 years ago.

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A recent study found that four proposed Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) projects in Cabo Delgado could consume at least 17% of the world’s remaining carbon budget. Cabo Delgado has faced an ongoing insurgency since 2017, adding to regional instability. Cabo Delgado is the northernmost province of Mozambique, located in East Africa. It borders Tanzania via the Rovuma River in the north and the Indian Ocean in the east.

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Recently, the Defence Secretary flagged off mountaineering expeditions to Mount Everest and Mount Kilimanjaro at an event held in South Block, New Delhi. Mount Kilimanjaro is Africa’s tallest mountain and the world’s largest free-standing mountain. It is located in northeastern Tanzania near the Kenya border and stretches around 80 km east to west. Kilimanjaro is a stratovolcano made up of three cones: Kibo, Mawenzi, and Shira.