Consider the following statements about Mechanical Weathering : 1. More compact and highly consolidated rocks are least affected by freeze-thaw weathering. 2. Shattering of rocks is more common in hot deserts. 3. Crystalline rocks are often prone to exfoliation. Which of the statements given above is/are correct ?

All three statements regarding mechanical weathering are correct:

• Statement 1: Freeze-thaw weathering (frost wedging) occurs when water enters rock crevices and expands by approximately 9% upon freezing. Compact and highly consolidated rocks with low porosity and fewer joints offer less space for water penetration, making them more resistant to this process.
• Statement 2: In hot deserts, extreme diurnal temperature fluctuations cause minerals in rocks to expand during the day and contract at night. This repeated thermal stress leads to shattering or block disintegration.
• Statement 3: Crystalline rocks (like granite) are particularly prone to exfoliation. This often happens due to 'unloading'—where the removal of overlying weight causes the rock to expand upward and crack into curved sheets, or due to differential thermal expansion of the surface layers.