Category 3 · Geography
Geomorphic Movements and Plate Tectonics
11 micro topics in Geography for UPSC Prelims, in book order: Endogenic Geomorphic Movements and Diastrophism; Exogenic Movements, Denudation and Weathering; and 9 more.
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3.1
Endogenic Geomorphic Movements and Diastrophism
Endogenic movements are forces from inside the Earth that build and deform the surface. Slow diastrophic movements include orogenic movements, which make mountains by folding and faulting, and epeirogenic movements, which raise or lower whole continents,…
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3.2
Exogenic Movements, Denudation and Weathering
Exogenic processes are surface forces driven by the Sun and gravity that wear down the landscape, together called denudation. Denudation includes weathering, the breakdown of rock in place, mass movement, the downslope movement of material, erosion…
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3.3
Continental Drift Theory of Alfred Wegener
The continental drift theory, proposed by the German meteorologist Alfred Wegener in 1912, says that all continents were once joined in a single supercontinent, Pangaea, surrounded by the ocean Panthalassa, which broke up from about 200…
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3.4
Seafloor Spreading and Paleomagnetism
Seafloor spreading is the process proposed by Harry Hess in the early 1960s in which new oceanic crust forms at mid-ocean ridges from rising magma and moves away on both sides, while old crust sinks back…
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3.5
Plate Tectonics and Types of Plate Boundaries
Plate tectonics is the theory that the rigid lithosphere is broken into a few large and many small tectonic plates that move slowly over the weak asthenosphere at a few centimetres a year. Most earthquakes, volcanoes…
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3.6
Movement of the Indian Plate
The Indian plate was part of the southern supercontinent Gondwanaland and separated from it over 100 million years ago. It then moved rapidly north, passed over the Reunion hotspot to produce the Deccan Traps about 66…
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3.7
Ocean-Ocean Convergence and Island Arcs
Ocean-ocean convergence occurs where two oceanic plates collide and the older, denser one subducts beneath the other, forming a deep ocean trench and, above the sinking slab, a curved chain of volcanic islands called an island…
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3.8
Ocean-Continent Convergence – Andes and Rockies
Ocean-continent convergence occurs where a denser oceanic plate subducts beneath a lighter continental plate, forming a deep trench offshore, a belt of folded and uplifted mountains with volcanoes along the continental edge, and frequent earthquakes. The…
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3.9
Continent-Continent Convergence – Himalayas and Tibetan Plateau
Continent-continent convergence occurs when two continental plates collide. Because both are light, neither subducts fully, so the crust is crumpled, thickened and thrust upward into huge fold mountains and plateaus. The Himalayas and the Tibetan Plateau,…
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3.10
Divergent Boundaries and Rift Valleys
A divergent boundary is a plate margin where two plates move apart and new crust is created from rising magma. Under the oceans it forms mid-ocean ridges, and on continents it forms rift valleys, long troughs…
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3.11
Great Rift Valley and Rift Valley Lakes
The Great Rift Valley is a vast system of rifts stretching about 6,000 km from the Jordan Valley and the Red Sea through East Africa to Mozambique. Its East African Rift branches hold long, deep rift…
Frequently asked questions
Which topics are in Geomorphic Movements and Plate Tectonics?
Geomorphic Movements and Plate Tectonics has 11 micro topics in Geography: Endogenic Geomorphic Movements and Diastrophism; Exogenic Movements, Denudation and Weathering; Continental Drift Theory of Alfred Wegener; Seafloor Spreading and Paleomagnetism; Plate Tectonics and Types of Plate Boundaries; Movement of the Indian Plate; Ocean-Ocean Convergence and Island Arcs; Ocean-Continent Convergence – Andes and Rockies; Continent-Continent Convergence – Himalayas and Tibetan Plateau; Divergent Boundaries and Rift Valleys; Great Rift Valley and Rift Valley Lakes.
Is Geomorphic Movements and Plate Tectonics important for UPSC Prelims?
Geomorphic Movements and Plate Tectonics is a part of the UPSC Prelims Geography syllabus map on MaargX UPSC. Each of its 11 published topics has key terms, a Mains angle and practice questions.