Physical Geography: Landforms, Monsoon Climate and Oceans
Physical Geography combines geomorphology, climatology and oceanography. The exam tests process reasoning: how landforms evolve, why rainfall varies, and how ocean temperature, salinity, currents and tides behave.
Geomorphology
Endogenic forces build relief; exogenic forces weather, erode, transport and deposit. Weathering breaks rock in place; erosion removes and carries material. The Deccan Traps, a large basaltic province, give Maharashtra its plateau relief and black soils. The Western Ghats form a steep escarpment; rivers such as the Godavari, Krishna and Tapi drain east or west from the divide.
Climatology
Maharashtra's climate is dominated by the southwest monsoon from June to September. The Arabian Sea branch strikes the Western Ghats, forcing air to rise, cool and rain heavily on the windward side. Descending air on the leeward side creates a rain shadow. October heat, winter and summer precede the monsoon.
Oceanography
The Konkan coast borders the Arabian Sea. Salinity is commonly around 35–37 psu, modified by river discharge and evaporation. Monsoon winds reverse seasonal currents. Tides are periodic rises and falls caused mainly by gravitational attraction of the Moon and Sun; currents are broader horizontal water movements.
Worked example
Mahabaleshwar, on the windward Western Ghats, receives very heavy monsoon rain, while Solapur, in the leeward interior, is much drier. Air from the Arabian Sea is forced up the Ghats, cools at the lapse rate and condenses; after crossing the crest it descends, warms and becomes drier. The reasoning is orographic uplift plus rain shadow, not simply distance from the sea.
Traps
Weathering is not erosion. The rain shadow is leeward, not windward. Tides are not currents. High salinity is not caused by cold water alone; evaporation, freshwater inflow and mixing matter.