UPSC Prelims Practice Questions — How do we know climate science is credible?

Q1. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), whose assessments underpin the global credibility of climate science, was jointly established and is sponsored by which two organisations?

  • A. World Meteorological Organization (WMO) and United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP)
  • B. United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and WMO
  • C. United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) and UNEP
  • D. World Health Organization (WHO) and WMO

Q2. In climate science, what does the term 'Earth's Energy Imbalance' (EEI) most precisely refer to?

  • A. The difference between incoming solar radiation absorbed by Earth and outgoing radiation emitted to space, a positive value indicating net planetary warming
  • B. The temperature difference between the equator and the poles that drives atmospheric circulation
  • C. The total quantity of greenhouse gases added to the atmosphere by human activity in a given year
  • D. The gap between a country's historical emissions and its fair share of the global carbon budget

Q3. Under whose chairship is the IPCC preparing its Seventh Assessment Report (AR7), and in which year was that Chair elected?

  • A. Jim Skea, elected in 2023
  • B. Hoesung Lee, elected in 2023
  • C. Jim Skea, elected in 2015
  • D. Rajendra Pachauri, elected in 2021

Q4. For its Seventh Assessment Report (AR7), how many experts did the IPCC appoint in 2025 as Coordinating Lead Authors, Lead Authors and Review Editors?

  • A. 664
  • B. 721
  • C. 598
  • D. 831

Q5. With reference to the IPCC's Seventh Assessment Report (AR7) cycle compared with the Sixth Assessment (AR6), consider the following statements: 1. The AR7 cycle is the first in IPCC history in which all three Working Groups held a single joint Lead Author Meeting. 2. Like AR6, the AR7 cycle is being conducted under the chairship of Jim Skea. 3. The three AR7 Working Group reports are expected to begin appearing around mid-2028. Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

  1. The AR7 cycle is the first in IPCC history in which all three Working Groups held a single joint Lead Author Meeting.
  2. Like AR6, the AR7 cycle is being conducted under the chairship of Jim Skea.
  3. The three AR7 Working Group reports are expected to begin appearing around mid-2028.
  • A. 1 and 2 only
  • B. 1 and 3 only
  • C. 2 and 3 only
  • D. 1, 2 and 3