Consider the following statements:  

Statement I: Scientific studies suggest that a shift is taking place in the Earth’s rotation and axis. 

Statement II: Solar flares and associated coronal mass ejections bombarded the Earth’s outermost atmosphere with tremendous amount of energy.   

Statement III: As the Earth’s polar ice melts, the water tends to move towards the equator.   

Which one of the following is correct in respect of the above statements?   

  • Both Statement II and Statement III are correct and both of them explain Statement I   
  • Both Statement II and Statement III are correct but only one of them explains Statement I   
  • Only one of the Statements II and III is correct and that explains Statement I   
  • Neither Statement II nor Statement III is correct  

Answer: (b) Both Statement II and Statement III are correct but only one of them explains Statement I

  • Recently, researchers used more than 120 years of data to decipher how melting ice, dwindling groundwater, and rising seas are nudging the planet’s spin axis and lengthening days. Days on Earth are growing slightly longer, and that change is accelerating. The reason is connected to the same mechanisms that have also caused the planet’s axis to meander by about 30 feet (10 meters) in the past 120 years. The findings come from two recent NASA-funded studies focused on how the climate-related redistribution of ice and water has affected Earth’s rotation.
  • In recent decades, the faster melting of ice sheets has shifted mass from the poles toward the equatorial ocean. This redistribution occurs when ice sheets and glaciers melt more than they grow from snowfall, and when aquifers lose more groundwater than precipitation replenishes.
    • These resulting shifts in mass cause the planet to wobble as it spins and its axis to shift location — a phenomenon called polar motion. They also cause Earth’s rotation to slow, measured by the lengthening of the day. Both have been recorded since 1900. This flattening causes Earth to decelerate and the day to lengthen, similar to when an ice skater lowers and spreads their arms to slow a spin.
  • Although solar flares and associated coronal mass ejections can bombard Earth’s outermost atmosphere with tremendous amounts of energy, most of that energy is reflected back into space by the Earth’s magnetic field. While the energy doesn’t decisively affect Earth’s rotation and axis, it causes heating and expansion of the thermosphere, disrupts radio communications, and affects satellites and power grids. Auroras, or the northern and southern lights, are also a direct result of these interactions.