Environmental Science MCQ Questions with Answers - Part 1

Environmental Science Questions Answers part 1 Eduhyme

Native peoples, completely dependent on nature for everything in their lives, worshipped Earth as a nurturing mother. The soil sprouted plants and trees that provided food, clothing, and shelter. The rivers and seas gave up fish and shellfish for food, trade articles, and tools.

Also Read:

From the atmosphere came rain, snow, and wind to water crops and adjust the seasons. Earth, never stagnant or dull, provided abundantly for early stewards of her resources. Ancient peoples thought that Mother Earth worked together with Father Sun to provide for those who honored her.

Are you searching for multiple-choice questions or quiz on Environmental Science? Are you worried and couldn’t find the solution? Here in this article, we’re going to give you the solution by showing some MCQ questions on Environmental Science.

1. What percentage of water covers the earth’s surface?

(a) 40%
(b) 50%
(c) 70%
(d) 80%

2. Aristotle was the first person to notice that

(a) The moon was round
(b) Mice always live near grain barns
(c) Bubbles appear in fermenting liquids
(d) The earth’s shadow on the moon is curved

3. What is the nearest major galaxy to the Milky Way?

(a) Orion
(b) Draco
(c) Andromeda
(d) Cirrus

4. A large, circular rotation pattern in the subtropical ocean is called a

(a) Plateau
(b) Gyre
(c) Mantle
(d) Hydrosphere

5. The magnetic pole is

(a) Kept moving by outer core currents
(b) Located exactly at the geographical pole
(c) Only observed in the Southern Hemisphere
(d) Based on observations of the tides

6. The lithosphere is

(a) Located below the ionosphere
(b) The crust and very top part of the mantle
(c) Roughly 5 to 20 km thick
(d) Fluid and soft in all areas

7. An active, adaptive control process that is able to maintain the Earth in overall balance is known as the

(a) Geary hypothesis
(b) Gaia hypothesis
(c) Miller hypothesis
(d) Gladiator hypothesis

8. The diameter of the sun is over how many times the diameter of the Earth?

(a) 50
(b) 75
(c) 100
(d) 125

9. The biosphere includes the

(a) Hydrosphere, crust, and atmosphere
(b) Oceans and trenches
(c) Crust, mantle layer, and inner core
(d) Hydrosphere and lithosphere

10. The extremely slow atom-by-atom movement and deformation of rock under pressure is known as

(a) Commuting
(b) Sedimentation
(c) Lithification
(d) Creep

11. The world’s oceans make up what percentage of the planet’s biosphere?

(a) 45 percent
(b) 60 percent
(c) 75 percent
(d) 99 percent

12. Which diverse ecosystem also helps in flood control by absorbing high flow and releasing water slowly?

(a) High plains
(b) Wetlands
(c) Arctic
(d) Rocky Mountains

13. The vertical range that contains the biosphere is roughly

(a) 5,000 meters high
(b) 10,000 meters high
(c) 20,000 meters high
(d) 40,000 meters high

14. The effect upon a species or environment that protects its numbers without causing long-term decline is known as

(a) Extinction
(b) Sustainable use
(c) Clear cutting
(d) Evolutionary use

15. The total area in which a plant, animal, insect, or other organism travels in its lifetime determines its

(a) itinerary
(b) Life span
(c) Personality type
(d) Range

16. A hotspot is an ecological region that has lost

(a) 20 percent of its original habitat
(b) 45 percent of its original habitat
(c) 60 percent of its original habitat
(d) More than 70 percent of its original habitat

17. When a species like the dodo bird becomes extinct, it is

(a) Hibernating for the winter
(b) Gone forever
(c) In remission
(d) Gone for 10 years, then returns

18. Madagascar and the Indian Ocean Islands, the Philippines, Sunderland, the Atlantic Forest, and the Caribbean are all considered

(a) Hotspots
(b) Expensive vacation spots
(c) Sustainable use areas
(d) Arid regions

19. A species that has survived while other similar ones have gone extinct is called a

(a) Relict species
(b) Barren species
(c) Anthropogenic species
(d) Gravimetric species

20. Aircraft, high-altitude balloons, and satellites are all used in

(a) Birthday parties
(b) Acrobatic air shows
(c) Remote sensing
(d) Field testing

21. Which of the following is a layer of the atmosphere?

(a) Angiosphere
(b) Gymnosphere
(c) Stratosphere
(d) Pycnosphere

22. What is it called when a NASA T-38 jet zips through the sky and leaves a trace?

(a) Mammatus cloud
(b) Contrail
(c) Lenticular cloud
(d) Really cool

23. Which two gases make up the majority of the Earth’s gases?

(a) Oxygen and methane
(b) Oxygen and propane
(c) Nitrogen and carbon dioxide
(d) Nitrogen and oxygen

24. The relationship between air temperature and the amount of water vapor it contains is known as

(a) Indistinct humidity
(b) Point source humidity
(c) Relative humidity
(d) Aridity

25. High-level clouds form above

(a) 1,000 meters
(b) 2,000 meters
(c) 6,000 meters
(d) 20,000 meters

26. A long, narrow, upper atmosphere current of fast-moving air is known as a

(a) contrail
(b) Jet stream
(c) Thermopile
(d) Typhoon

27. Which atmospheric layer is largely responsible for absorbing most of the sun’s ultraviolet (UV) radiation?

(a) Troposphere
(b) Cumulus cloud
(c) Stratonimbus
(d) Ozone

28. Conflicts between air masses are called

(a) Fossilization
(b) Fronts
(c) Precipitation
(d) Auroras

29. A sudden change in the wind’s direction or speed with increasing altitude is called

(a) Wind shear
(b) Wind stop
(c) Wind chill
(d) Wind rear

30. Carbon monoxide, chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs), heavy metals, hydrocarbons, and nitrogen oxides are all

(a) Found in automobile tires
(b) Common air pollutants
(c) Good for the environment
(d) Organic compounds

31. Greenhouses work

(a) When the walls and ceiling are painted green
(b) By trapping the sun’s heat
(c) Best when arctic mosses are grown
(d) When generators are used to maintain temperature

32. Greenhouse gases include all but which of the following?

(a) Graphite
(b) Water vapor
(c) Nitrous oxide
(d) Carbon dioxide

33. The burning of fossil fuels (oil, coal, and natural gas) that creates global warming and changes the environment is known as the

(a) Deforestation
(b) Enhanced greenhouse effect
(c) Lithification
(d) Biodiversity

34. Compared to carbon dioxide, how do nitrogen oxides trap heat in the atmosphere?

(a) They don’t trap heat at all
(b) Much less efficiently
(c) About 10 percent less efficiently than carbon dioxide
(d) Much more efficiently

35. Of the 92 percent of Americans who had heard of global warming, what percentage thought the United States should reduce its greenhouse gas emissions?

(a) 40 percent
(b) 50 percent
(c) 75 percent
(d) 90 percent

36. When the earth’s natural atmospheric gases decrease the amount of heat released from the atmosphere, it is known as the

(a) Wind power
(b) Winter solstice
(c) Greenhouse effect
(d) Green thumb effect

37. What percentage of total greenhouse gases comes from carbon dioxide?

(a) 30 percent
(b) 50 percent
(c) 70 percent
(d) 90 percen

38. The 2004 United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity suggests that global warming is causing

(a) Poor television reception
(b) Species habitat and migration shifts averaging 6.1 km/decade toward the poles
(c) An increase of mosquitoes in southern climates
(d) Species habitat and migration shifts averaging 6.1 km/decade toward the equator

39. If the amount of human-produced carbon dioxide being absorbed into the oceans gets high enough, the ocean’s top layer may become increasingly

(a) Acidic
(b) Basic
(c) neutral
(d) Murky

40. British Petroleum, Intel, and SC Johnson have all committed to

(a) Supporting breast cancer research
(b) Sponsoring a 5K race on Earth Day
(c) Finding environmentally friendly ways of doing business
(d) Using wind power to power all their processes

41. A pollutant that comes from one specific place like a factory or oil refinery is a (n)

(a) Open source
(b) Point source
(c) non–point source
(d) Menace to the community

42. Groundwater is stored in

(a) Pitchers
(b) Milk jugs
(c) Moon craters
(d) Aquifers

43. All of water’s movement throughout the Earth’s hydrosphere is known as the

(a) Hydrologic cycle
(b) Geologic cycle
(c) Atmospheric cycle
(d) Climatic cycle

44. The layer closest to the surface, where spaces between soil particles are filled with both air and water, is called the

(a) Zone of hydration
(b) Zone of aeration
(c) Zone of acclimation
(d) Zone of precipitation

45. When water changes from a liquid to a gas or vapor, it is called

(a) Aeration
(b) Precipitation
(c) Evaporation
(d) Inoculation

46. Surface tension measures the

(a) Depth of a liquid in a lake
(b) Depth of the water table
(c) Configuration of salt crystals
(d) Strength of a liquid’s thin surface layer

47. Aquifers that form a water table that separates the unsaturated and saturated zones are called

(a) Confined aquifers
(b) Saturated aquifers
(c) Unconfined aquifers
(d) Dams

48. Outwash is made up of

(a) Impermeable clay and silt
(b) Detergents
(c) Highly permeable sand and gravel open to groundwater flow
(d) Impermeable sand and gravel closed to groundwater flow

49. The time that water spends in the groundwater part of the hydrologic cycle is called

(a) Geologic time
(b) Cosmic time
(c) Aeration time
(d) Residence time

50. Infiltration takes place when

(a) Rainfall soaks into the ground
(b) Deserts get drier and drier
(c) Plants use water during photosynthesis
(d) Food is absorbed by the stomach

51. When species are transported geographically to an unknown area, they are called

(a) The new kids
(b) Jellyfish
(c) Native
(d) Non-native

52. What process causes important changes in the ocean-atmosphere system in the equatorial Pacific region?

(a) El Corazon
(b) El Shaddai
(c) El Niño
(d) El Abuelo

53. What percentage of light is present in the aphotic zone?

(a) 0%
(b) 5%
(c) 10%
(d) 20%

54. The Midatlantic Ridge, the margin between crustal plates, is where

(a) Nothing much ever really happens
(b) New seafloor is created and pushed up from the magma below
(c) Subduction is pushing the continental plate below the Atlantic plate
(d) Lots of ships sink

55. Ocean salinity measures the amount of

(a) Coral reefs formed at an atoll
(b) Salt in one millimeter of mercury
(c) Salt on your skin after swimming in the ocean
(d) Salt found in one kilogram of water

56. Temperature, salinity, and pressure all influence water

(a) Density
(b) Taste
(c) Levels
(d) Fluidity

57. Zebra mussels are

(a) The largest of the mussels
(b) An introduced species in the Great Lakes
(c) Actually more spotted than striped
(d) Related to zebra clams

58. SCUBA stands for

(a) Self-counted umbrella banking account
(b) Self-contained underwater belching apparatus
(c) Sea coral growth and barracuda activity
(d) Self-contained underwater breathing apparatus

59. What percentage of the earth’s surface is covered by oceans?

(a) 48%
(b) 56%
(c) 66%
(d) 72%

60. Which current reverses direction twice a year?

(a) California current
(b) Gulf Stream
(c) Somali current
(d) Australian current

61. The total amount of ice on a planet is called the

(a) Lithosphere
(b) Mantle
(c) Hydrosphere
(d) Cryosphere

62. The Little Ice Age took place between

(a) 1000–1400 A. D.
(b) 1350–1650 A.D.
(c) 1600–1850 A. D.
(d) 1700–1900 A.D.

63. What percentage of the earth’s fresh water do glaciers hold?

(a) 25%
(b) 40%
(c) 75%
(d) 90%

64. When soil is frozen and never gets warm enough to thaw out, it is known as

(a) Rock
(b) Icy mounds
(c) Loess
(d) Permafrost

65. The pieces of land that border a glacier area but are not covered by ice are called

(a) Tectonic margins
(b) Islands
(c) Periglacial areas
(d) equatorial

66. What percentage of an iceberg is unseen below the surface of the water?

(a) 30%
(b) 50%
(c) 75%
(d) 90%

67. When glaciers wear away rock it is called

(a) Sanding
(b) Pyroclastic erosion
(c) Glacial erosion
(d) Grooving

68. Icebergs are

(a) Always cold
(b) Large chunks of ice broken off from the lower ends of massive glaciers
(c) Known to be ship killers
(d) all of the above

69. Who is known as the Father of Glaciology?

(a) Jack Showers
(b) Louis Agassiz
(c) Douglas Williams
(d) Alfred Wegener

70. The rock and sediment landform deposited by passing glaciers as they cut through valleys is

(a) moraine
(b) Loess
(c) Glacial dunes
(d) Hardpack

71. One of the most newsworthy chemical weathering types is known as

(a) Rock grinding
(b) Tornadoes
(c) Acid rain
(d) X-rays

72. Radiopharmaceuticals are used

(a) As fertilizers in farming
(b) To lose weight without exercising
(c) To study organ function and structure
(d) To control insects

73. Storm drain stenciling is a

(a) New art form
(b) Lot like wall stenciling
(c) Good way to seal open manhole covers
(d) Way to remind people about the final destination of storm runoff

74. Thermal pollution

(a) Can kill off entire marine populations
(b) is harmless
(c) Is caused by oil spills
(d) Can be prevented by outlawing the use of electric blankets

75. The best way to slow or stop acid deposition is to

(a) Keep people out of chemical labs
(b) Add carbon dioxide
(c) Build taller smokestacks
(d) Limit chemical emissions at their source

76. Acid rain has been measured in

(a) Germany
(b) Yugoslavia
(c) Australia
(d) all of the above

77. Which of the following is an important marker of a river’s ability to support aquatic life?

(a) Carbon tetraflouride
(b) Dissolved oxygen
(c) Free nitrogen
(d) Not many fisherman

78. What chemical added to wastewater during coagulation forms sticky blobs that snag bacteria, silt, and other impurities?

(a) Alum
(b) Carbon
(c) Sodium
(d) Polonium

79. What is the reaction called when the surface of limestone statues are discolored and disfigured by rain?

(a) Glaciation
(b) Dissolution
(c) Desertification
(d) Aging

80. Ultraviolet light, used to treat wastewater by killing microorganisms, is

(a) A hugely popular water treatment method
(b) Not as effective as ultra purple light treatment
(c) A one-time treatment at the plant
(d) Protects water from pollution forever

81. Mass wasting is a combination of

(a) Weathering plus centrifugal force
(b) Gravity plus magma
(c) Weathering plus gravity
(d) Erosion plus pyroclastic flow

82. Frost wedging is caused by

(a) Jack Frost
(b) The repeated freeze-thaw cycle of water in extreme climates
(c) Mudflows
(d) Lava backup

83. Wide destruction of native vegetation across the planet has increased

(a) Soil exposure and erosion
(b) The number of scenic vacation spots
(c) Oxygen levels in homes
(d) Volcanic eruptions

84. The soil found in dry or semi-arid climates with little organic matter and little to no leaching of minerals is called

(a) Pedocal
(b) Pedalfer
(c) Laterite
(d) Muck

Answers –