Carbon Cycle Flashcards
Sizes of the major stores of carbon?
Lithosphere Hydrosphere Pedosphere Cryosphere Atmosphere Biosphere
What percentage of carbon is found in the lithosphere?
99.985%
What percentage of carbon is found in the Hydrosphere?
0.0076%
What percentage of carbon is found in the Pedosphere?
0.0031%
What percentage of carbon is found in the Cryosphere?
0.0018%
What percentage of carbon is found in the Atmosphere?
0.0015%
What percentage of carbon is found in the Biosphere?
0.0012%
Where is carbon in the cryosphere found?
Polar regions and highlands areas of Himalayas and Patagonia
Where is carbon found in the atmosphere?
North America, Europe and Asia South Africa, Java, China and South America
When does North America, Europe and Asia release the most carbon?
Autumn and winter
Why does North America, Europe and Asia release the most during these seasons?
trees lose their leaves and photosynthesis slows down - in the spring and summer the opposite happens.
When does South Africa, Java, China and South America release the most carbon?
summer
Why does South Africa, Java, China and South America release the most during these seasons?
burning of forests
Where are the highest amounts of carbon found in the hydrosphere?
Atlantic and Bay of Bengal
An example of the warm ocean carbons?
the Gulf Stream, which keeps carbon at the surface whilst cold water takes carbon to the bottom of the ocean.
Where is the highest concentration of carbon found in the lithosphere?
Hyrdrocarbons found concentrated in North America, Former USSR and the Middle East
Where is the highest concentration of carbon found in the biosphere?
The tropical rainforest due to lush vegetation
Where is the highest concentration of carbon found in the pedosphere?
Northern latitudes Boreal forests due to slower decomposition in soils
What are the factors diving change in the magnitide of the biosphere?
Photosynthesis Respiration Decomposition Combustion
What are the factors driving the change in the magnitude of the cryosphere?
Reduced rate of decomposition storing CO2 for 1000s of years
What are the factors driving the change in the magnitide of the hydrosphere?
Diffusion
Calcification
Compaction
Phytoplankton
What are the factors driving the change in the magnitude of the lithosphere?
Tectonic uplift Volcanic activity Weathering
How does photosynthesis change to the magnitude?
light energy converts CO2 into glucose, releasing O2
How does Respiration change to the magnitude?
O2 absorbed and CO2 is released (50% of CO2 absorbed by photosynthesis is returned this way)
How does Combustion change the magnitude?
CO2 rapidly released due to fires e.g. lightning strike
How does Diffusion change the magnitude?
ocean ventilates CO2 out and dissolves CO2 in during acidification
How does Calcification change the magnitude?
Shells and coral take carbon ions and convert into carbonate to build shells
How does Compaction change the magnitude?
marine plants and animals (fish) die and decompose on sea bed, compacted under sediment to form hydrocarbonsShells and coral dissolve releasing CO2 whilst others are compacted under sediment
How does Phytoplankton change the magnitude?
microscopic organism convert CO2 via photosynthesis
How does Tectonic uplift cause change in the magnitde?
reveals sedimentary rock formed in ocean
How does Volcanic activity cause change in the magnitide?
releases CO2 back into atmosphere
How does Weathering cause change in the magnitude?
breakdown of rock in-situ. Carbon in atmosphere mixes with H2O to create carbonic acid which dissolves rock into calcium ions which run-off takes to ocean
How does the carbon cycle change over time due to natural variation?
Cold temperatures
Hot temperatures
Volcanic eruptions
Wildfires
How does cold temperatures cause cause changes to the carbon cycle over time?
Low co2 every 100,000 years Less transfer pedosphere Less flow into hydrosphere Less decompositionLess forest cover More weathering
How does hot temperatures cause changes to the carbon cycle over time?
More co2 every 100,000 years
Melting of permafrost (Siberia) release of CO2 and methane
How does Volcanic eruptions cause cause changes to the carbon cycle over time?
542-251 million years more active
130-380 million tonnes/year
How does Wildfires cause cause changes to the carbon cycle over time?
ndonesia (97/13)Noticeable spikeSink to source
How does human impact change the carbon cycle over time?
Hydrocarbons for energy and power
Land use change
Deforestation
Agriculture
How has the use of hydrocarbons for power and engergy impacted the carbon cycle over time?
Increased since Industrial Revolution, dramatic increase since 1950s (ninefold increase), 2013 - 61% higher than 1990
Which countries emit the most hydrocarbons for power and energy?
China, USA, India
What is the relative importance of hydrocrabons for power and energy?
Very important in terms of long term stores - 70-100 million years old
87% of CO2 emissions
How has land use change impacted the carbon cycle over time?
Important stores (vegetation and soils) replaced Urban pop to reach 60% by 2030, growing 1.3 million people a week
What is the relative importance of landuse?
Can have big impact on small-scale carbon cycles
Urban - 2% land use but 97% of CO2
Cement - 2.4%-5% of global emissions
How has deforestation impacted the carbon cycle over time?
Replaced with grassland therefore absorption reduced13 million ha cut down every year
example of land use changes?
urbanisation, transport, industry, cement production
What does deforestation do?
releases CO2 quickly with no time for new vegetation to grow
What is the relative importance of deforestation?
20%-30% of all CO2 emissions
Changes forests from sink to source
How has Agriculture impacted the carbon cycle over time?
Movement to meat diets - emissions from animals up 11% (2001-11)
Rice yields up 25% due to more CO2, but methane up 40%
44% from Asia for last 10 years
How does agriculture affect the carbon cycle?
fertilisers based on fossil fuels, machinery emissions, livestock e.g. cows releasing methane,rice paddies produce methane, ploughing breaks down organic matter quicker releasing carbon
What is the relative importance of agriculture?
Rice 10-20% - staple for 50% of the world
Cattle in USA responsible for 20% of USA methane
What is the carbon budget?
The balance of carbon between the different stores.
How does the carbon budget vary?
No sphere is in balance with any other.
What are the main sinks?
The hydrosphere, pedosphere and biosphere
What is the main source of carbon?
lithosphere
What is a carbon sink?
area or ecosystem that absorbs more carbon dioxide than it releases.
Where is the greatest exchange of carbon?
Atmosphere and both the hydrosphere and the biosphere
Which sphere absorbs the most amount of carbon?
The atmosphere(followed by the biosphere and then hydrosphere)
Is the carbon budget in dynamic equilibrium?
No More carbon is being given out than taken in
Which is greater, human sources or natural sources?
Natural But the increase in human sources is causing the imbalance
What is the impact of the carbon cycle on the land?
Carbon fertilisation
What would happen if CO2 doubled?
Plant growth might increase from 12% to 76%
What is 70% of greening thought to be due to?
Rising CO2
How is carbon fertilisation negative feedback?
more CO2 = more plants = less CO2
How is plant growth limited by other factors?
availability of water, nutrients especially nitrogen, sunlight
What can plants be susceptible to if plants grow faster?
diseases
What happens to water stressed plants?
More susceptible to fire and insects
What does the increase in temperatures lead to in the soil?
decomposition, leading to increase in CO2 - 55 trillion kg by 2050.
What is the impact of the carbon cycle on the atmosphere?
The greenhouse effect
What is the process of the greenhouse effect?
Incoming shortwave (UV) radiation heats the earth’s surface (although some is reflected back out by clouds etc)The earth’s surface radiates this heat out as longwave (infrared) radiation which heats the air above itSome of this longwave radiation escapes back out into space whilst some is trapped by the greenhouse gases e.g. CO2, methane, water vapour…making the earth warmer
What is the average temperature of our plant?
15C
What is the average temperature of the earth without the green house effect?
-18C
What causes the enhanced greenhouse effect?
increase in anthropogenic gases
What does an increase in anthropogenic gases result in?
more longwave radiation becoming trapped, further increasing the temperature of the planet.
What is the balance between the incoming and outgoing radiation called?
radiative forcing
What is the evidence for for the greenhouse effect?
16 of the top 17 hottest years on record have occurred since 2000Overall there has been an increase in global average temperature, since 1880 by around 1 degreeEvery month of the year is seeing an increase.Comparison of CO2 levels and Antarctic temperatures for the last 800,000 years show a strong correlation.
What does RCP stand for?
representative concentration pathways
What do RCPs predict?
between 450 and 1300ppm and 2 and 6 degrees by 2100
What is the impact of the carbon cycle on the ocean?
Ocean acidification
Albedo
Ocean salinity
What increases as the amount of CO2 in the atmosphere increases?
CO2 levels in the ocean increases
What happens as more CO2 accumulates in the ocean?
the pH of the ocean decreases showing a negative correlation
What percentage of anthropogenic emissions are diffused into the ocean?
30%
What does dissolving CO2 create?
carbonic acid
What does carbonic acid increase?
Acidity
What happens when carbonic acid reacts with carbonate ions?
bicarbonate
What does less carbonate mean?
Less calcification (creation of calcium carbonate) More energy needed to build shells which are thinner and more fragile
What does more acidic water do to shells?
dissolve shells of organisms making them pitted and weak.
What happens if coral reef is lost?
providing food and livelihood for 500 million as well as coastal protection from sea level rise and storm surges
What would happen to phytoplankton in warmer waters?
Unable to grow Less carbon would be absorb via photosynthesis
What has caused the sea levels to change?
- Melting of terrestrial ice - increase temperatures in summer and less precipitation in winter
- Thermal expansion - as water heats up it expands. Half of rise due to this
- Sea levels rose by almost 6 inches in the 20th Century. Projected to rise by 0.8-2.0m by 2100.
What is Albedo?
A measure of how much light that hits a surface is reflected without being absorbed.
What is the fraction of sunlight that is reflected for ice?
Ice is around 0.9
What is the fraction of sunlight that is reflected for open water?
Open water is 0.1
What happens to Albedo as ice melts?
It decreses
What is happening due to the decrease in ice?
water absorbs more short wave radiation ( Increasing its temperature)
What has happened due to water absorbing more short wave radiation?
ice in the Arctic has dramatically decreased from around 7 million Km2 in 1980 to 3 million in 2012.
What is happening as more ice melts?
greater likelihood of potential resources being exploited
What will happen as more potential resources are being exploited?
lead to disagreements over territorial claims e.g Russia. This has already led to an increase in militarisation of the area. There will also be potential for reduced shipping distances through the Northwest Passage
What would increase salinity?
Evaporation or freezing of seawater
What would decrease salinity?
Precipitation or melting of snow
Which parts of the world have the highest salinity?
Tropics of Cancer and Capricorn (high salinity 36-38ppt)
Which parts of the world have the lowest salinity?
Linear pattern especially around poles (low salinity 32ppt)
Why does the Tropics of Cancer and Capricorn have such high salinity?
Less rain at tropics of Cancer and Capricorn and high temperatures
Why does the poles have the lowest salinity?
Melting ice in poles
Where else in the world might have the lowest salinity?
ITCZ, Equator
Is hot water denser than cold water?
No Cold water is more sense
Why does water sink in the Artic?
The water is cold and has a high slinity duw to water sinking
Why does water rise along the equator?
Since it is warmer and less saline so will come to the surface
How do carbon stores support life on earth?
essential for respiration and photosynthesis. Creation of shells and coral in the oceans.
50% of biomass is made of carbon.
Provides energy e.g. hydrocarbons.
Is a greenhouse gas keeping the atmosphere at habitable levels
How do water stores support life on earth?
Needed by all living organismsVital source of power and energy production.
What is the relationship between the water cycle and the carbon cycle in the atmosphere?
Hydrosphere - exchange of CO2 from the atmosphere into the hydrosphere
Atmosphere - carbon and H2O combine to form carbonic acid
Weathering - water in form of carbonic acid dissolves carbon rich rocks and rivers take these carbon ions to the sea where they are turned into calcium carbonate by shells and coral.
What role does ocean salinity make within and between cycles?
Ocean salinity - increase in CO2 leading to warming ocean and melting of ice which leads to less saline water and possible collapse of thermohaline conveyor.
What role does Albedo make within and between cycles?
increase in CO2 leading to warming ocean, therefore less ice and less albedo therefore more warming.
What role does Permafrost make within and between cycles?
higher temperatures leads to melting therefore more CO2 and more warming.
What role does Global Warming make within and between cycles?
increase in temperature leads to more evaporation, therefore more water vapour (GHG) therefore more warming.
How do humans intervene in the carbon cycle to influence transfers and mitigate the impacts?
Carbon Capture Storage (CCS) Changing rural land useAviation industry
What is Carbon Capture Storage (CCS)?
converting CO2 into liquid under high pressure and transporting by ship or pipeline, storing it (sequestration) in depleted oil and gas fields several km below.
How might changing rural mitigate impacts of the carbin cycle?
Grasslands - adding manure and fertiliser increases soil organic carbon (SOC) and plant productivity. Avoiding overstocking of grazing animals.
Croplands - mulching to add organic matter and stop release of carbon, less ploughing, use of animal manure to increase plant productivity, rotation of crops and improved varieties.Forested land - protection of forests, reforesting/afforestation, agroforestry.
How might the aviation industry effect the carbon cycle?
2013 produced 700m tonnes of CO2 and by 2020 will be 70% higher and could be 300-700% higher by 2050.
How to mitigate the aviation industry?
Movement management - towing aircraft whilst still on ground, avoiding stacking, adopting fuel efficient routes.
Flight management - 100% occupancy, cruising at lower speeds, matching aircraft to route.
Design and tech - increased efficiency, use of biofuels, improved aerodynamics, reduced weight, carbon capture with engines, maximising number of seats
