Consider the following statements:

1. The Red Sea receives very little precipitation in any form.
2. No water enters the Red Sea from rivers.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

1. 1 only
2. 2 only
3. Both 1 and 2
4. Neither 1 nor 2

Explanation

Both statements are correct

• The Red Sea was in the news due to Houthi rebel attacks on commercial ships since late 2023, disrupting global trade routes. The Red Sea is a semi-enclosed tropical basin connected to the Indian Ocean through the Bab-al-Mandab Strait. It flows to the Mediterranean Sea through the Suez Canal. It is located in a hot and arid region surrounded by deserts, experiences a climate with very low precipitation, often less than 100 mm (4 inches) annually, due to subtropical high-pressure systems and the influence of surrounding deserts.
  • The Red Sea supports a unique environment because of the lack of any permanent rivers that flow into it. It has an overall negative water balance (i.e. the evaporation is greater than the precipitation and combined river runoff).

Answer: (c) Both 1 and 2; Difficulty Level: Hard