The Carbon Cycle Flashcards
What is carbon?
GIve a fact about carbon
Give an example of organic carbon.
Give an example of inorganic carbon.
How much carbon is stored in the atmosphere?
0.015% of all carbon is stored in the atmosphere
What does carbon form when mixed with rainwater in the atmosphere?
carbonic acid
How much carbon is stored in the lithosphere (and marine sediments)?
99.9% of all carbon is stored in the lithosphere.
Give 3 examples of carbon stores found in the lithosphere.
- Marine sediment
- Soil organic matter
- Peat
How much carbon is stored in the hydrosphere?
0.0076% of all carbon is stored here
Compare the storage of carbon in the intermediate layer with the storage of carbon in the surface layer of the ocean.
How much carbon is stored in the cryosphere?
0.0018% of all carbon is stored here
Compare the storage of carbon in the cryosphere with the storage of carbon in the atmosphere.
How much carbon does permafrost contain?
1400 gigatonnes
How much carbon is stored in the biosphere?
0.012% of all carbon is stored here
How does carbon enter the biosphere? Why is this important?
Describe the storage of carbon in the pedosphere (soil layer)
What is the residence time in terms of carbon?
How long carbon can be stored.
Describe the global pattern (distribution) of carbon storage in plants.
- Tropical and subtropical forests, for example The Amazon Rainforest, store the largest amount of carbon out of any biome
- Carniferous forests in the northern hemisphere store a high density of carbon (e.g in Russia and Canada)
- There is a low carbon density in the Sahara since desert areas are completely deprived of vegetation.
Give two examples of carbon stores with a long residence time.
- Land plants (5 years)
- Atmosphere (3 years)
Give two examples of carbon stores with a short residence time.
- Fossil fuels (650 years)
- Sedimentary rocks (150 million years)
What are the major stores of carbon in the pedosphere?
- Carbon is mostly stored in the high latitudes towards the north in the form of permafrost.
How does the distribution of carbon in the pedosphere compare to the biosphere?
Why is the lithosphere an important carbon store?
Why is the hydrosphere an important carbon store?
Why is the cryosphere an important carbon store?
Why is the pedosphere an important carbon store?
Why is the atmosphere an important carbon store?
Why is the biosphere an important carbon store?
How might a carbon molecule move between the atmosphere and biosphere?
How might a carbon molecule move between the atmosphere and the hydrosphere?
How might a carbon molecule move between the lithosphere and the hydrosphere?
How might a carbon molecule move between the atmosphere and the lithosphere?
What kind of system is the carbon cycle?
The carbon system is closed since the volume of carbon in the world remains constant but it is transferred to different stores within the system.
Give an example to support the fact that the carbon cycle is a cascading sub-system.
Carbon moves from the hydrosphere to the lithosphere through the decomposition of marine organisms.
What is a carbon sink? Give 2 examples of carbon sinks.
Anything that outputs more carbon than it stores.
1. Marshland
2. Humans
What is a carbon source? Give 2 examples of carbon sources.
Anything that stores more carbon inputs that it outputs.
1. Compost heap
2. Rockfall
What are release agents? Give 2 examples of carbon sources.
Any processes that trigger the release of carbon.
1. Volcanic activity
2. Forest fires
What are fluxes?
The rate of flow between carbon (and water) stores.
