Consider the following statements:
Statement I: Scientific studies suggest that a shift is taking place in the Earth’s rotation and axis.
Statement II: Solar flares and associated coronal mass ejections bombarded the Earth’s outermost atmosphere with tremendous amount of energy.
Statement III: As the Earth’s polar ice melts, the water tends to move towards the equator.
Which one of the following is correct in respect of the above statements?   

• Earth’s rotation and axis (spin axis): Earth spins around an imaginary line (the rotation axis) that intersects the surface near the geographic poles. The axis and the spin rate are not perfectly constant - they can change slightly.

• Polar motion / axis shift: Small movements of where Earth’s spin axis intersects the crust (a “wobble” + longer-term drift), driven mainly by mass redistribution within/on Earth.

• Length of day (LOD): Tiny changes in Earth’s rotation rate make the day slightly longer/shorter.

• Solar flares & CMEs: Explosive solar events; CMEs can trigger geomagnetic storms and dump energy into the upper atmosphere/ionosphere, affecting satellites, radio, aurora, etc.

• Mass redistribution from ice melt: When polar ice melts and water spreads into the oceans, mass tends to shift from high latitudes toward lower latitudes (toward the equator), changing Earth’s moment of inertia and affecting spin/axis.

Statement I: Studies suggest a shift is taking place in Earth’s rotation and axis.
✅ Correct. Observations and modeling show measurable changes in rotation/axis (polar motion, LOD variations), with climate-driven mass shifts being a major contributor.

Statement II: Solar flares and CMEs bombarded Earth’s outermost atmosphere with tremendous energy.
✅ Correct as a general space-weather statement (they strongly affect the upper atmosphere).
❌ But it does not explain Statement I in the usual scientific framing of long-term axis/rotation shift; the big, sustained driver discussed in the key studies is mass redistribution (ice melt/groundwater/oceans), not solar storms.

Statement III: As polar ice melts, water tends to move toward the equator.
✅ Correct, and this directly explains shifts in rotation rate and the rotation axis via redistribution of mass (making Earth slightly “fatter” at the equator and altering polar motion).

Correct option

Both Statement II and Statement III are correct, but only Statement III explains Statement I.