Cycle in Nature Vocab Flashcards
Water cycle
the cycle of processes by which water circulates between the earth’s oceans, atmosphere, and land, involving precipitation as rain and snow, drainage in streams and rivers, and return to the atmosphere by evaporation and transpiration.
Evaporation
the process of water turning from liquid into vapor.
Transpiration
(of a plant or leaf) the release of water vapor through the stomata (leaf.)
Run-off
water moves across/over the ground into various waterways. Occurs when there is excessive precipitation and the ground is saturated (cannot absorb any more water).
Precipitation
Liquid water evaporates into water vapor, condenses to form clouds, and precipitates back to earth in the form of rain and snow.
Condensation
Water vapor in the air cools as it rises up and changes back into liquid form, forming clouds.
Carbon cycle
nature’s way of reusing carbon atoms, which travel from the atmosphere into organisms in the Earth and then back into the atmosphere over and over again.
Decomposition
when an animal dies, their remains breakdown, and it becomes sediment, trapping the stored carbon in layers that eventually turn into rock or minerals.
Nitrogen cycle
a repeating cycle of processes during which nitrogen moves through both living and nonliving things: the atmosphere, soil, water, plants, animals and bacteria.
Nitrogen fixation
the process that causes the strong two-atom nitrogen molecules found in the atmosphere to break apart so they can combine with other atoms
Ammonification
Decomposition by bacteria and fungi break down amino acids from dead animals and waste into ammonia.
Nitrification
Nitrifying bacteria in the ground first combine ammonia with oxygen to form nitrites. Then another group of nitrifying bacteria convert nitrites and nitrates, which green plants can absorb and use
Assimilation
the process by which plants and animals incorporate (use) the NO3- and ammonia formed through nitrogen fixation and nitrification.
