Brenden+McMahon

What It Means To The World  __//** **// What is the Carbon Cycle? //**  Many might wonder how carbon could be a part of everything, the best way to describe this is that it moves in a cycle, where every single living and nonliving organism plays a role in its passage through the stages of this process. Carbon is exchanges between the biosphere, pedosphere, geosphere, hydrosphere and the atmosphere. The main way Carbon is taken from the __atmosphere__ is that when plants perform photosynthesis where carbon dioxide is converted to oxygen and carbohydrates, which is a source of nurishment for all plants. This process is most concentrated in relatively new forests, where rapid tree growth is still taking place. Carbon is releaed into the atmosphere through several processes, such as, respiration, the decay of plants and animals, combusiton of organic substances, volcanic eruptions and metamorphism. Carbon is an essential part of life, and it plays an important role in the structure, biochemistry and nutriton of all living cells. In the __biosphere__, around ten gigatons of carbon is present, and most of it enters through photosynthesis, and sometimes [|chemosynthesis]. Carbon supplies nurishment for plants and animals by moving along food chains and food webs, where every single organism uses carbon in some manner. Most carbon leaves the biosphere through respiration, both anarobic and anaerobic, which can either release methane or carbon dioxide into the atmosphere or the hydrosphere. The __oceans__, play one of the largest roles in the carbon cycle, containing around 36,000 gigatonnes of carbon, which is over 90% in the form of [|bicarbonate ion] .Hurricanes and other powerful storms submerge large amounts of carbon because they wash away great amounts of rock. Inorgaic Carbon is important in the reactions that it is involved in in the water, for this type of carbon exchange helps control pH in the ocean and can also as a sink for carbon. Limestone, which is formed from bicarbonate and calcium, is the largest reservoir of carbon in the carbon cycle, it can release large amounts of carbon into the atmosphere or it can store large amounts for varying amounts of time. For furhter information: [] [] If you are still confused about what the carbon cycle is here is a video explaning everything you would want to know about it:
 * //__ The Carbon Cycle :

media type="youtube" key="U3SZKJVKRxQ" height="344" width="425" //**Why is the Carbon Cycle Important for Climate Change ? **// The Carbon Cycle, like all biogeochemical cycles, is influencd by human activities. Through the burning of fossil fuels, the transfer of carbon from one [|reserve]   to another is accelerated. The long term effects on the environment from the increased carbon levels in the atmosphere will not prove beneficial for the climate and the organisms on the planet. What needs to be understood is that the reserves in all the different parts of the carbon cycle can only hold so much of the element, and any excess is released into the atmosphere. The adding of billions of tons of carbon into the atmosphere is altering its heat-trapping nature by changing the capacity. We as humans must try to change the amount of carbon we release into the atmosphere for if we are to preserve the environment and the planet we call home, then we must seriously consider what other means we can use to create energy. The future of the atmosphere also depends on the response of the ecosystems of the land and ocean to the change in climate. Carbon levels naturally flux over periods of time, for that is how nature tries to keep everything in balance, but there are factors that could affet the amount of carbon in the atmosphere. The thawing of permafrost, drying of wetlands, the ocean biological pump and others could release large amounts of stored carbon, for the levels in these geopraphical areas could prove significant in the flow of carbon to the atmosphere. If climate change can be kept under control then the natural carbon cycle can be restored and the flow of carbon around the planet can once again be at equilibrium. The concentration of carbon gas in the atmosphere, despite natural retraints and human attempts to control their CO2 emissions, has continued to rise, and the overall temperature of the planet has risen with it, and many scientists believe that there is a definite correlation between the two. One of the leading factors in the disturbance of the carbon cycle is the accelerated [|microbial decomposition] in the regions to the north where ice covers the ground all year long. This type of decomposition is greatest in these areas for the thawing of the permafrost is releasing frozen carbon that has been in that state for very long periods of time into the atmosphere. The natural process has been acclerated to the point where more carbon is being let out into the atmosphere than is being taken in. Human activities is a definite factor in this acceleration but it is also the effect of large carbon levels in the atmosphere that has caused the amount of heat that bears down on the permafrost to increase. The carbon cycle is what connects the entire world together, and with this important process thrown into distortion, the world naturally follows it. This picture illustrates how carbon moves through the different stages and the distribution that occurs balances it to the point where the environment is healthy and prosperous. The [|increase in carbon levels] over the past two hundred years, first started with the Industrial Revolution and grew into the modern CO2 emission vehicles that are destroying our environment.

Further Information: [] []

**// What Chemistry Is Involved With The Carbon Cycle? //** Carbon can be distributed and redistributed through several different processes. The carbon cycle involves several different paths that carbon can take into and out of the atmosphere. To see these different processes more clearly go to this web site and click view tutorial next to Section 4.7 Carbon Cycle: [|http://www.wwnorton.com/ COLLEGE/chemistry/gilbert/ tutorials/ch4.htm] Some processes that release carbon into the atmosphere are combustion, evaporation, and respiration. Combustion is done by the burning of fossil fuels, which release carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. The reaction can be represented as: Fuel(Methane) + Oxygen à Carbon Dioxide + Water (+energy) Or      CH4 + 2O2 à CO2 + 2H2O Carbon stored in fossil fuels is released back into the atmosphere. Another means of carbon going back into the atmosphere is evaporation. Carbon Dioxide in sea water is evaporated and released into the atmosphere in this process. This process can be represented as: Sea Water + Sunlight à Water + Carbon Dioxide Or H2O + CO2 à H2CO3 (Carbonic Acid) Evaporation releases CO2 dissolved in seawater back into the atmosphere. One way plants and animals release CO2 back into the atmosphere is through respiration. In this reaction plants and animals release CO2 by breathing. This reaction can represented as: Glucose + Oxygen à Carbon Dioxide + Water + Energy Several processes occur to put carbon into the earth also such as decay, photosynthesis, and sedimentation. When organic matter such as dead carcasses are squashed by materials over many years they decay into coal, oil, and gas. Carbon is stored into all of these and stays in the earth until they are burned as fossil fuels. Photosynthesis is how plants absorb carbon. This is done to make sugar from CO2 from the atmosphere and water. This takes carbon from the atmosphere and it is usually redistributed to the atmosphere through respiration. Finally, another process in which carbon is stored in the earth is sedimentation. In this process dead sea creatures decay without air under extreme pressure. Eventually, the decay becomes oil or natural gas, which can be taken from the ground and released back into the atmosphere. Carbon can take several pathways when cycling through the ecosystem but it couldn’t happen without these chemical reactions that occur during it. Works Cited " Biogeochemical Cycles." World of Earth Science. Ed. K. Lee Lerner and Brenda Wilmoth Lerner. Vol. 1. Detroit: Gale, 2003. 72. Gale Virtual Reference Library. Gale. EDWIN O SMITH HIGH SCHOOL. 16 Mar. 2009 < []      "The Global Carbon Cycle." __Faculty of Science @ UW__. 16 Mar. 2009 <[|http://www.science.uwaterloo. ca/~cchieh/cact/applychem/ ccycle.html]>. Helmenstine, Anna M. "Carbon Cycle - Storage and Exchange of the Earth's Carbon." __Chemistry - Periodic Table, Chemistry Projects, and Chemistry Homework Help__. 16 Mar. 2009 [|http://chemistry.about.com/ od/geochemistry/ss/ carboncycle.htm] Mayer, Amy. "On antartic ice: life at low diversity: nematodes are tiny, soil-dwelling animals that play a major role in Antarctic ecosystems. Identifying the genes involved in their responses to environmental changes, past and present, may contribute to understanding the carbon cycle. " BioScience. 58.7 (July-August 2008): 580(6). General Reference Center Gold. Gale. EDWIN O SMITH HIGH SCHOOL. 16 Mar. 2009 < [Documents&type=retrieve&tabID=T002&prodId=GRGM&docId=A182663782&source=gale&userGroupName=s2191&version=1.0] >.

Schuur, Edward A.G., James Bockheim, Josep G. Canadell, Eugenie Euskirchen, Christopher B. Field, Sergey V. Goryachkin, Stefan Hagemann, Peter Kuhry, Peter M. Lafleur, Hanna Lee, Galina Mazhitova, Frederick E. Nelson, Annette Rinke, Vladimir E. Romanovsky, Nikolay Shiklomanov, Charles Tarnocai, Sergey Venevsky, Jason G. Vogel, and Sergei A. Zimov. "Vulnerability of permafrost carbon to climate change: implications for the global carbon cycle.(Report). ." BioScience. 58.8 (Sept 2008): 701(14). General Reference Center Gold. Gale. EDWIN O SMITH HIGH SCHOOL. 16 Mar. 2009 < [] >.

"Trees dying faster than expected, carbon cycle altered: Adelgid damage more severe. " Knoxville News-Sentinel (Knoxville, TN). (March 7, 2009): NA. General OneFile. Gale. EDWIN O SMITH HIGH SCHOOL. 16 Mar. 2009 < [] >.

Wang, XiaoGuo, Bo Zhu, MeiRong Gao, YanQiang Wang, and XunHua Zheng. "Seasonal variations in soil respiration and temperature sensitivity under three land-use types in hilly areas of the Sichuan Basin.(Report). ." Australian Journal of Soil Research. 46.8 (Dec 2008): 727(8). General OneFile. Gale. EDWIN O SMITH HIGH SCHOOL. 16 Mar. 2009 http://find.galegroup.com/itx/infomark.do?&contentSet=IAC-Documents&type=retrieve&tabID=T004&prodId=ITOF&docId=CJ195075263&source=gale&userGroupName=s2191&version=1.0 [].

Credits: "What is the Carbon Cycle?" and "Why is the Carbon Cycle Important for Climate Change?" and Supplying of the Pictures and Videos on Page was done by Brenden McMahon "What Chemistry Is Involved In the Carbon Cycle?", the Construction of the Bibliography and Supplying of the Pictures and Videos on Page was done by Alejondro Perez-Segura