CARBON CYCLING Flashcards
How is a carbon flux measured?
Mass/area/time kg-km2-yr
How much more carbon is there in the biosphere than the atmosphere?
3x
How many more times does carbon move from the biosphere-atmosphere opposed to burning fossil fuels?
20x
What are 4 atmospheric carbon inputs?
Respiration
Volcanoes
Combustion
Decomposition
What are 3 ways carbon is removed from the atmosphere?
Dissolution in water
Weathering
Photosynthesis
How can CO2 be measured?
Mauna Loa observatory
Infrared sensors
Direct air samples
What is Radiative Forcing?
The measure of the influence a factor has in altering the balance of energy in the Earth-atmosphere system (IPCC, 2007)
Where does our carbon go?
44% to the atmosphere, 29% to the biosphere and 22% to the oceans (La Quere, 2018)
What will happen to our oceans as they warm?
Decreased CO2 capacity
ENSO will become modified (Wang, 2016)
Oceans will become acidified (Feely, 2004)
Sea level rises due to thermal expansionists
Where is carbon found in the biosphere?
Biomass
Soil
Fauna
How is carbon cycled through the biosphere?
Generation
Transformation
Oxidation
Where can the missing carbon be from records?
NH forests
Tropical forest
Peatlands
Mangroves
How can we measure carbon stocks?
Through a combination of satellites and book-keeping
What 3 factors Cana affect cycling systems?
deforestation (33mha/year lost, FAO 2015)
Land use change (Gills and Salmon, 2015)
Increased LOAD (land-ocean aquatic continuum) meaning more carbon is brought to the ocean
How do we apportion anthropogenic CO2?
Direct measurement
Proxies and isotopes
