Previous Year Question
Arrange the following lakes in correct descending order of their area using the codes given below:
Great Bear
Baikal
Victoria
Superior
Codes:
4, 3, 2, 1
4, 2, 1, 3
3, 2, 1, 4
3, 1, 4, 2
Correct Answer: A
Detailed Solution
The correct descending order is—Superior → Victoria → Baikal → Great Bear.
Lake Superior is the largest of these four lakes by surface area. Its surface area is approximately 82,100 km². It forms part of the Great Lakes between the United States and Canada and is regarded as the world's largest freshwater lake by surface area.
It is followed by Lake Victoria, whose area is generally given within approximately 63,000–69,000 km². It is situated in East Africa between Tanzania, Uganda and Kenya and is the largest lake in Africa.
Lake Baikal has a surface area of about 31,500 km². Although much smaller than Victoria in surface area, it reaches a maximum depth of approximately 1,700 metres and is the world's deepest and oldest lake. It contains nearly 20% of the world's unfrozen freshwater reserve.
Great Bear Lake is situated in Canada's Northwest Territories and has an area of approximately 31,400 km². Thus, its surface area is slightly smaller than that of Baikal, placing it fourth among the four lakes given.