'Mount Newman' is famous for which of the following minerals?
- (a)Copper
- (b)Manganese
- (c)Iron ore
- (d)Bauxite
Correct — C, Iron ore. Mount Newman, in the Pilbara region of Western Australia, is one of the world's great iron-ore mining centres; the adjacent Mount Whaleback mine (operated by BHP) is the largest single open-pit iron-ore mine on Earth. The town of Newman itself grew up around this iron-ore industry.
- (a)Copper — Australia's major copper comes from mines such as Olympic Dam (South Australia) and Mount Isa (Queensland), not Mount Newman.
- (b)Manganese — Australia's principal manganese source is Groote Eylandt (Northern Territory), not Mount Newman.
- (d)Bauxite — Australia's bauxite is mined chiefly at Weipa (Queensland) and the Darling Range (Western Australia), not at Mount Newman.
The Pilbara region of Western Australia is one of the world's richest iron-ore provinces. Mount Newman (Mount Whaleback) and nearby deposits yield high-grade haematite ore, most of it exported to East Asia. Australia is the world's largest iron-ore exporter, and iron ore is its single biggest merchandise export.
This is world economic geography — associating a famous mining town with its signature mineral. Mount Newman is a giveaway for iron ore once you know the Pilbara / Mount Whaleback story. Each distractor pairs a genuine Australian mineral with the wrong location.
- Mount Newman (Pilbara, Western Australia) → iron ore; Mount Whaleback is the world's largest single-pit iron-ore mine.
- Australia is the world's largest iron-ore exporter, with the Pilbara as its core producing region.
- Copper: Olympic Dam / Mount Isa; Manganese: Groote Eylandt; Bauxite: Weipa — all elsewhere in Australia.
- Haematite (Fe2O3) is the chief ore mineral of iron mined in the Pilbara.
- Guessing copper or bauxite because Australia is rich in those too — but at different locations.
- Confusing Mount Newman (iron ore) with Mount Isa (copper-lead-zinc).
Place↔mineral association in world economic geography — know the signature mineral of famous mining towns.
No directly related past PYQ was found.
- practice — not a real PYQ
The Pilbara region, a major source of iron ore, is located in which country?
- (a)Brazil
- (b)Australia
- (c)South Africa
- (d)Canada
Answer(b) Australia — the Pilbara (Western Australia) is a leading iron-ore province.
- practice — not a real PYQ
The Mount Isa mine in Queensland, Australia is chiefly associated with:
- (a)Iron ore
- (b)Copper, lead and zinc
- (c)Gold only
- (d)Bauxite
Answer(b) Copper, lead and zinc — a major base-metal mining centre.