NCERT Solutions for Class 12 English Vistas Chapter 3 “Journey to the End of the Earth” provide detailed, precise, and easy-to-understand answers to all textbook questions. This complete study guide covers Read and Find Out and Reading with Insight. Be sure to read Journey to the End of the Earth Summary to grasp Tishani Doshi’s eye-opening expedition, geological insights, and environmental message more effectively!
Journey to the End of the Earth Class 12 Question Answers
Read and find out questions
Q.1. How do geological phenomena help us to know about the history of humankind? (p. 19)
Ans. Geological phenomena such as the movement of continents, the formation of mountains and the layers of ice and rock keep a record of the Earth’s long history. By studying them, we learn how the Earth looked millions of years ago, how climate and life changed, and how continents drifted and separated. For example, India once belonged to the supercontinent Gondwana along with Antarctica. When India pushed northwards, it buckled Asia’s crust and formed the Himalayas. The drifting of South America opened the Drake Passage, which created the cold circumpolar current that keeps Antarctica frozen. Fossils, granite shields and ice records show the rise and extinction of species, and so we understand where we have come from and the changes that shaped the world. Human civilisation is a very recent part of this long history, only about 12,000 years old.
Q.2. What are the indications for the future of humankind? (p. 20)
Ans. The indications are not good (“the prognosis isn’t good”). Human beings have increased their population rapidly, which has led to competition with other species for limited resources. The unrestrained burning of fossil fuels has created a blanket of carbon dioxide around the world, which is slowly increasing the average global temperature. If this continues, the West Antarctic ice sheet could melt, the Gulf Stream could be disrupted, and the world as we know it could change. Humankind may go the way of the dinosaurs, mammoths and woolly rhinos, unless we act to protect the environment. The author also finds some hope in the idealistic young people who want to save the world.
Reading with Insight (pp. 22–23)
Q.1. ‘The world’s geological history is trapped in Antarctica.’ How is the study of this region useful to us?
Ans.
- The past: Antarctica was the centre of the ancient supercontinent Gondwana, which existed 650 million years ago, when India and Antarctica were one landmass. Its rocks, such as pre-Cambrian granite shields and Cordilleran folds, tell the story of how continents formed and separated.
- Climate records: Its ice-cores hold half-million-year-old carbon records trapped in layers of ice. By studying them, scientists can understand how the Earth’s climate and carbon levels have changed over time.
- The present: It has never sustained a human population, so it remains relatively pristine, and scientists can study the effects of human activity on the environment. We can see glaciers retreating and ice shelves collapsing, which makes global warming real.
- The future: It has about 90 per cent of the Earth’s ice, so its melting would raise sea levels worldwide. Its simple ecosystem shows how small changes (like ozone depletion affecting phytoplankton) have big repercussions. This helps us predict future changes and take action in time.
Q.2. What are Geoff Green’s reasons for including high school students in the Students on Ice expedition?
Ans. Geoff Green got tired of taking celebrities and retired, rich curiosity-seekers to Antarctica, because they could give back only in a limited way. He chose high school students because:
- They are the future generation of policy-makers.
- They are at an age when they are ready to absorb, learn and, most importantly, act.
- The experience of seeing Antarctica first-hand is life-changing and makes them understand and respect the planet.
- Their idealism can help to save the world.
The programme gives them inspiring educational opportunities and fosters a new understanding and respect for the Earth.
Q.3. ‘Take care of the small things and the big things will take care of themselves.’ What is the relevance of this statement in the context of the Antarctic environment?
Ans. The statement comes from the author’s “parable of the phytoplankton”. Phytoplankton are microscopic, single-celled plants, the “grasses of the sea”, which use sunlight to assimilate carbon and make organic compounds through photosynthesis. They nourish and sustain the entire food chain of the Southern Ocean, from tiny creatures to fish, seals, birds and whales. They also affect the global carbon cycle. Scientists warn that further depletion of the ozone layer will harm their activity. This would affect all marine animals and birds in the region and the carbon cycle. Antarctica has a simple ecosystem and little biodiversity, so a small change can have a large effect. Therefore, protecting tiny but vital elements, such as phytoplankton, the ozone layer and small changes in temperature and carbon levels, will keep the whole environment in balance. The same lesson applies to human life and the planet: small actions matter.
Q.4. Why is Antarctica the place to go to, to understand the earth’s present, past and future?
Ans.
- Past: It was the centre of Gondwana, and its rocks and half-million-year-old ice-cores hold the record of the Earth’s geological and climatic history.
- Present: It is the only continent that has never sustained a human population, so it is relatively pristine. It shows the direct effects of global warming (retreating glaciers, collapsing ice shelves) and has a simple ecosystem in which small changes show clear results.
- Future: It holds 90 per cent of the Earth’s ice. Whether the West Antarctic ice sheet melts will affect sea levels, ocean currents and the climate of the whole world. Its study helps us to predict what may happen to the Earth and humankind.
That is why the author says that if we want to study the Earth’s past, present and future, Antarctica is the place to go.
