Lesson 13- What is the relationship between the water and carbon cycle and life on earth? Flashcards
How are carbon and water linked as a life support mechanism?
1) Volcanic eruptions- transfer water and carbon from the lithosphere to the atmosphere
2) Water has the ability to absorb and transfer CO2
3) Water transports weathered material
- and organic matter, (containing carbon) from land to the oceans
4) Calcium carbonate in the ocean is used for coral, shell and skeletal formation by marine animals
5) Changes in atmospheric carbon concentrations affect water cycling and precipitation patterns
6) Photosynthesis and respiration
- transfer carbon and water between the biosphere and the atmosphere
7) Evapotranspiration- increases with higher levels of CO2 in the atmosphere
8) Changes in the carbon cycle are melting parts of the cryosphere- (permafrost), releasing more carbon dioxide and methane into the atmosphere
How do water and carbon interact in the atmosphere to cause a positive feedback loop?
1) Atmospheric carbon increases
2) Temperature increases
3) Ocean temperatures increase
4) Evaporation increases
5) More water vapour in the atmosphere
6) Water vapour is a greenhouse gas and contributes to the effect more than CO2
7) Temperatures increase further
How else do carbon and water interact in the atmosphere?
1) Carbon particles can provide condensation nuclei for water droplets to form on, this increases cloud formation and precipitation.
2) Carbon dioxide can be dissolved in rainfall as carbonic acid and this is what causes acid rain
3) Increased carbon in the atmosphere means more ice melts so ocean stores of carbon increase
How is the interaction of water and carbon in the atmosphere impacting stuff?
1) Permafrost: increased temperature is causing it to melt, releasing more carbon into the atmosphere through decomposition and methane.
2) Carbon makes rainwater acidic: this causes the weathering of carbonate rocks (limestone) which releases carbon from the lithosphere and transfers it to the atmosphere and oceans.
How do water and carbon interact in the oceans?
-Diffusion
1) Ocean water can absorb carbon from the atmosphere through diffusion
2)The biological pump of photosynthesis and respiration causes carbon to move from oceans to atmosphere.
3)The oceans can be a carbon sink to absorb carbon from the atmosphere. This increases ocean acidity. This can decrease marine life. Which can result in less carbon being stored in the oceans
How else do water and carbon interact in the ocean?
-Rivers
1) In the oceans, carbon is brought in (input) by rivers through sediment and dissolved carbon such as from limestone in solution.
2) The carbon in the oceans forms corals and other marine organisms.
3) Carbon is also dissolved in the water.
How else do water and carbon interact in oceans?
-Thermohaline circulation
- The movement of the Earth’s ocean currents transfers water, heat energy and organic matter (carbon) around the globe.
- It also allows carbon to be diffused into the water when it cools in the northern hemisphere and be dragged down to the depths of our oceans and stored there as a carbon sink.
- It facilitates the transferring and storage of carbon in the oceans
How do water and carbon interact in the pedosphere and the biosphere?
1) A water shortage has serious impacts for the carbon cycle.
2) A water shortage occurs.
3) Rates of photosynthesis decrease.
4) Plants grow less
5) Amount of organic litter added to the soil will decrease.
6) Rates of decomposition will decrease.
7) CO2 entering the atmosphere from respiration and decomposition will decrease.
8) Soil store of carbon decreases and also its ability to retain water.
How do water and carbon interact in the cryosphere?
1) Increased atmospheric CO2 concentration.
2)Increased global temperatures.
3)Melting of ice sheets, glaciers, sea ice and permafrost.
4) Decreased albedo (more dark coloured surfaces) so increased absorption of insolation.
5) Further temperature increase.
6) Thawing of permafrost increased rates of oxidation and decomposition of organic matter released carbon dioxide and methane.
How are the water and carbon cycles impacted by climate change?
- Increased evaporation
- Time lag of evaporation?
- Increased atmospheric water and carbon stores with increased temps
How are the water and carbon cycles impacted by climate change?
-Increased evaporation
1) Increased atmospheric carbon
2) Increased temperatures
3) Warmer oceans
4) Higher evaporation rates
5) Wetter atmosphere (more water vapour)
6) More GHGs in the atmosphere
7) Increased temperatures again
How are the water and carbon cycles impacted by climate change?
-Time lag of evaporation increase?
1) There is a lag between increased evaporation and increased global temperatures as it takes a while for the positive feedback loop to be fully triggered.
2) The temperature will increase by a further 0.6ºC because of the Co2 already in the atmosphere.
3) Additional positivefeedbacks will also be caused which will continue the warming, which include othergreenhouse gases being released, and changes inice sheetcover and vegetation patterns.
How are the water and carbon cycles impacted by climate change?
-Increased atmospheric water and carbon stores with increased temps
1) Increased precipitation results in higher run-off and greater flood risks.
2) Water vapour releases latent heat on condensation- more energy in the atmosphere can make extreme weather events more powerful and frequent.
3) Melting of glaciers, ice sheets and permafrost so reduced water storage in the cryosphere as it is transferred to oceans and the atmosphere.
Impact of increased atmospheric carbon
- Warmer oceans can’t absorb as much carbon as they become too acidic which reduces phytoplankton growth
- Higher temperatures increase rates of decomposition and respiration so more carbon transferred from the biosphere and soil to the atmosphere. However, higher temperatures may increase rate of photosynthesis
- Increase aridity of the climate in the tropics so threaten the extent of forests- rainforests replaced by grasslands which have smaller biomass stores.
- Boreal forest to expand pole-wards, increasing the biomass store. But the below ground store will reduce as permafrost will thaw.
- Large scale forest fires will increase in certain areas of the world. The release of extra CO2 from forest fires will only exacerbate the climatic change occurring.
How are humans changing the water and carbon stores?
-Water cycle
-Rising demand for water for irrigation caused shrinking of the Aral Sea.
-London artesian aquifer overexploited in the 1850s due to heavy industry so water table lowered – now this is rising due to less ground water extraction due to deindustrialisation.
-Urbanisation increases overland flow, decreases infiltration and increases flood risk.
Deforestation causes:
- Increased risk of flooding in the Amazon (short term – more overland flow, less interception)
- Drought (long term – less evaporation - precipitation).
How are humans impacting the water and carbon stores?
-Carbon cycle
- Increased atmospheric carbon: Fossil fuel combustion by heavy industry and transportation has increased atmospheric levels to over 400ppm.
- Releasing lithospheric carbon from the slow carbon cycle: Fossil fuels are part of the slow carbon cycle but when combusted they release this stored carbon.
- Releasing carbon from the biosphere:
- Deforestation has reduced the biomass store of carbon. Slash and burn releases CO2. Soil is also degraded by erosion.
- Ocean acidification reducing the hydrosphere store: Ocean acidification occurring which leads to multiple impacts including less phytoplankton and photosynthesis meaning oceans can store less carbon
