Places in News Current Affairs MCQs

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In the harsh environment of Death Valley, 97 runners recently embarked on the Badwater 135, a 48-hour ultramarathon renowned as the world’s toughest foot race. Death Valley, located in southeastern California, USA is the lowest, hottest, and driest part of North America, spanning 7,800 sq. km, with about 1,425 sq. km below sea level. This rift valley, formed by the sinking of rock between major faulted mountains, is part of Death Valley National Park and the Mojave and Colorado Deserts Biosphere Reserve. It is bordered by the Grapevine, Funeral, and Black Mountains to the east, and the Panamint and Cottonwood Mountains to the west.

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A group of senators in Liberia, located along the coast of western Africa, has proposed relocating the capital city, Monrovia, due to recurring flash floods. Liberia is Africa’s oldest republic and the only African state never subjected to colonial rule. Bounded by Sierra Leone, Guinea, Côte d’Ivoire, and the Atlantic Ocean, Liberia features notable elevations like Cape Mount, Cape Mesurado, and Cape Palmas. Major rivers include the Mano, Morro, and Cavalla, which form parts of its boundaries. Liberia is rich in natural resources such as iron, diamonds, gold, lead, manganese, graphite, and cyanite.

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UNESCO has inscribed China’s Migratory Bird Sanctuaries along the Yellow Sea-Bohai Gulf (Phase II) to its World Heritage List. The Bohai Gulf, the innermost part of the Yellow Sea, covers about 78,000 sq. km along China’s northeastern coast. Historically known as the Gulf of Chili or Pechili, it is surrounded by the Liaodong and Shandong Peninsulas. Major cities like Dalian and Tianjin are located on its shores, and it features important bays such as Liaodong Bay and Bohai Bay. The Yellow River flows into the gulf, which is a key area for petroleum deposits and industries.

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A state of emergency was declared in Kursk, Russia, after a Ukrainian incursion. Kursk is a city in southwestern Russia, near the Ukrainian border, located along the Seym River, 450 km south of Moscow. It’s known for its fertile soil and moderately continental climate. Kursk is one of Russia’s oldest cities, first mentioned in 1032, and was rebuilt in 1586 as a military outpost. It was the site of the largest tank battle in WWII, the Battle of Kursk, in 1943. Today, Kursk is known for its industries, including machine building, food processing, and a nuclear power station.

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A British man set a new Guinness World Record for the highest altitude ski BASE jump, leaping from 18,753 feet on Mera Peak in Nepal. Mera Peak is located in the Khumbu region of Nepal, standing at 6,476m above sea level, making it the highest trekking peak in the country. The peak dominates the area between the Hinku and Hongu Drangkas valleys and is considered the gateway to Everest. Trekkers usually climb Mera Central, although Mera North Peak is the highest. Mera Peak was first climbed in 1953 by Col. Jimmy Roberts and Sen Tenzing.

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INS Shivalik recently arrived in Guam for an operational turnaround after participating in RIMPAC 2024, the world’s largest multinational maritime exercise. Guam is the largest and southernmost of the Mariana Islands in the Northern Pacific Ocean and is a US territory. It was a Spanish colony until 1898, becoming a US territory after the Spanish-American War. Guam has a tropical climate with trade winds and equatorial currents. The native Chamorros are of Malayo-Indonesian descent with influences from Spanish, Filipino, Mexican, and other ancestries. The capital of Guam is Hagatna.

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Researchers from the University of Chile found that Chile’s Atacama Salt Flat is sinking due to lithium brine extraction. The Atacama Salt Flat, or Salar de Atacama, is the largest salt deposit in Chile. It features a white surface with a large salt lake beneath it. The lake under the salt flat holds one of the world’s largest lithium reserves. Located in the Atacama Desert, one of the driest places on Earth, the northern part of the basin includes the San Pedro River delta.

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The central government has designated the international trans-shipment hub at Galathea Bay in the Andaman & Nicobar Islands as a ‘Major Port.’ It is located on Great Nicobar Island and is being developed as an International Container Transshipment Port (ICTP). The project will receive central funding and be developed under a public-private partnership model. Phase 1 is set to begin in 2028 with a handling capacity of 4 million TEUs, growing to 16 million TEUs by 2058. The port’s strategic location near international trade routes and its deep water depth make it significant for capturing transshipment cargo from other ports.

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Hurricane Francine recently led to a shutdown of 42% of crude oil and 53% of natural gas production in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico. The Gulf of Mexico is a partially landlocked sea on the southeastern edge of North America. It is the world’s largest gulf and a marginal sea of the Atlantic Ocean. It is bordered by the Yucatán and Veracruz regions of Mexico to the west, the United States to the north, the Caribbean and Cuba to the east, and the Mexican mainland to the south. The Gulf connects to the Caribbean Sea through the Yucatán Channel and to the Atlantic Ocean via the Straits of Florida.

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A bathymetric study is being conducted around Pallikaranai marshland to measure the amount of sludge that can be removed.
This study, essential for wetland restoration and flood management, is a response to the increasing pressures from encroachments and sewage discharge. The marsh is a freshwater and partly saline wetland located 20 km south of Chennai, Tamil Nadu. It acts as a flood buffer for the Chennai and Chengalpattu districts. The marsh includes 65 wetlands connected to the Bay of Bengal through Okkiyam Madavu and Kovalam Creek. Pallikaranai is a Ramsar site in India.