Up Next. Learn more. Carbon Cycle Glossary abiotic non-living physical and chemical environmental factors that affect the ability of organism to survive and reproduce; examples include rainfall, temperature, soil nutrients, sunlight. These are the reservoirs, or sinks, through which carbon cycles. Carbon is a constituent of all organic compounds, many of which are essential to life on Earth. Biogeography. amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere is rapidly rising; it is already considerably greater than at any time in the last 800,000 years. Carbon-nitrogen cycle definition at Dictionary.com, a free online dictionary with pronunciation, synonyms and translation. The microbes appear to be playing an important role in the global, Biology students may remember learning the water cycle, the, The crackers are made from ingredients sourced from farmers who are using regenerative agricultural practices, which help improve the health of the soil and restore the natural, What if the legislative cycle were as sensitive and responsive as the, At roughly 200,000 square kilometers, the Pantanal comprises about 3% of the globe's wetlands and plays a key role in the, Post the Definition of carbon cycle to Facebook, Share the Definition of carbon cycle on Twitter. 'All Intensive Purposes' or 'All Intents and Purposes'? These are the reservoirs, or sinks, through which carbon cycles. Key processes in the fast carbon cycle. Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. It appears that your browser doesn't support HTML5 video. (Biology) the circulation of carbon between living organisms and their surroundings. THE CARBON CYCLE CONCEPT If a person were asked to name the element most important to sustaining life, chances are he or she would say oxygen. Humans play a major role in the carbon cycle through activities such as the burning of fossil fuels or land development. Here's a direct link to © 2012 Farlex, Inc. Carbon in the water is also taken in by sea plants and used to make their own food, during 'Nip it in the butt' or 'Nip it in the bud'. The phosphorus cycle. VIDEO: What is the carbon cycle? This element is also found in our atmosphere in the form of carbon dioxide (CO2). Carbon is a major component in carbohydrates, fats and proteins. The carbon cycle describes the flow of carbon between each of these places. Accessed 12 May. Carbon cycle definition is - the cycle of carbon in the earth's ecosystems in which carbon dioxide is fixed by photosynthetic organisms to form organic nutrients and is ultimately restored to the inorganic state (as by respiration, protoplasmic decay, or combustion). The source of the carbon found in living matter is carbon dioxide in the air or dissolved in water. This process is called diffusion. afforestation reestablishing a forest on land that has been without forest for a … Are you building something up or tearing it down? 3 words related to carbon cycle: biological process, organic process, thermonuclear reaction. The oceans are a major carbon … Sea grasses, mangroves, salt marshes, and other systems along our coast are very efficient in storing CO2. The biological pump, also known as the marine carbon pump, is, in its simplest form, the ocean's biologically driven sequestration of carbon from the atmosphere and land runoff to the ocean interior and seafloor sediments. Sort by: Top Voted. Practice: Biogeochemical cycles. More from Merriam-Webster on carbon cycle, Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about carbon cycle. Look it up now! When these systems are damaged or disrupted by human activity, an enormous amount of carbon is emitted back into the atmosphere, contributing to climate change. Transcript. Carbon dioxide … Carbon is the chemical backbone of all life on Earth. The carbon cycle involves the exchange of carbon between living organisms (biotic) and their atmosphere (abiotic). Carbon cycle definition, the circulation of carbon atoms in the biosphere as a result of photosynthetic conversion of carbon dioxide into complex organic compounds by plants, which are consumed by other organisms: the carbon returns to the atmosphere in the form of carbon dioxide as a result of respiration, decay by fungi, bacteria, etc., and combustion of fossil fuels. These areas also absorb and store carbon at a much faster rate than other areas, such as forests, and can continue to do so for millions of years. Biology is brought to you with support from the Amgen Foundation. Carbon sequestration occurs both naturally and as a result of anthropogenic activities and typically refers to the storage of carbon that has the immediate potential to become carbon dioxide gas. Learn a new word every day. It is also stored in places like the ocean, rocks, fossil fuels, and plants. How to use a word that (literally) drives some pe... How well have you been paying attention this month? Next lesson. For example, carbon continually flows in and out of the atmosphere and also living things. The Carbon Cycle Step 2 Carbon dioxide is absorbed by producers (life forms that make their own food e.g. Describes the features of the carbon cycle and the effect of fossil fuels. carbon dioxide cycle The route followed by CO2 as it passes through biological systems: it is incorporated by plants or bacteria and transformed into organic matter ingested by non-CO2-fixing organisms, which die or excrete organic material, providing the substrate for the continuing cycle. Carbon helps to regulate the Earth’s temperature, makes all life possible, is a key ingredient in the food that sustains us, and provides a major source of the energy to fuel our global economy. The carbon cycle was first described by Antoine Lavoisier and Joseph Priestley, and popularised by Humphry Davy. The global carbon cycle is now usually divided into the following major reservoirs of carbon interconnected by pathways of exchange: the carbon cycle definition: 1. the continuous movement of carbon between different living organisms on earth and between living…. Carbon is released back into the atmosphere when organisms die, volcanoes erupt, fires blaze, fossil fuels are burned, and through a variety of other mechanisms. The carbon cycle shows how atoms of this element can exist within different compounds at different times. Sometimes dead organisms become fossil fuels that go through combustion, giving off CO2, and the cycle continues. The movement of carbon from reservoir to reservoir is known as the carbon cycle. Please tell us where you read or heard it (including the quote, if possible). In other words: When you drive a car, the engine burns fuel which creates a certain amount of CO2, depending on its fuel consumption and the driving distance. What made you want to look up carbon cycle? The carbon cycle. As a result, the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere is rapidly rising; it is already considerably greater than at any time in the last 800,000 years. Carbon sequestration, the long-term storage of carbon in plants, soils, geologic formations, and the ocean. Can you spell these 10 commonly misspelled words? The nitrogen cycle. All of the carbon we currently have on Earth is the same amount we have always had. Most carbon is stored in rocks and sediments, while the rest is stored in the ocean, atmosphere, and living organisms. It's also found in our atmosphere in the form of carbon dioxide or CO2. Blue Carbon, Green Infrastructure, and Nature-Human Health Connections: NOAA Planet Stewards, Bringing Wetlands to Market: the Power of Coastal Blue Carbon in a Changing Climate The carbon found in coastal soil is often thousands of years old. (Biology) the circulation of carbon between living organisms and their surroundings. Biogeochemical cycles overview. The carbon cycle is the biogeochemical cycle by which carbon is exchanged between the biosphere, geosphere, hydrosphere and atmosphere of the Earth. Carbon dioxide in the atmosphere is taken up by the green plants and other photosynthetic … What are synonyms for carbon cycle? Biogeochemical cycles overview. Eutrophication and dead zones. The key processes in the fast carbon cycle include: Photosynthesis: the absorption of CO 2 from the atmosphere (terrestrial plants) and from oceans (marine plants) to produce organic carbon structures. The carbon cycle is a result of many interacting forces across multiple time and space scales that circulates carbon around the planet, ensuring that carbon is available globally. Plants grab carbon dioxide from the atmosphere to use in photosynthesis; some of this carbon is transferred to soil as plants die and decompose. Marine organisms from marsh plants to fish, from seaweed to birds, also produce carbon through living and dying. The ocean is a giant carbon sink that absorbs carbon. As the air passes over the water, some of the carbon is taken up and stored in the air. the video instead. It is true that many living things depend on oxygen to survive, but, in fact, carbon is even more fundamental to the sustenance of life. On Earth, most carbon is stored in rocks and sediments, while the rest is located in the ocean, atmosphere, and in living organisms. Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free! A carbon footprint is defined as the total amount of greenhouse gases produced to directly and indirectly support human activities, usually expressed in equivalent tons of carbon dioxide (CO2).. Here's an overview in under two minutes. Synonyms for carbon cycle in Free Thesaurus. Segen's Medical Dictionary. The release of carbon from thawing soils in permafrost regions represents just such a cycle. The carbon cycle is 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. The carbon cycle is the way carbon is stored and replaced on Earth.Some of the main events take hundreds of millions of years, others happen annually. Where the carbon is located — in the atmosphere or on Earth — is constantly in flux. many bondsup to four per atomin a seemingly endless variety of complex organic molecules. Antonyms for carbon cycle. The cycle is … Phosphorus cycle. Respiration: the release of CO2 into the atmosphere, soil and oceans by animals as they exhale. In the case of the ocean, carbon is continually exchanged between the ocean’s surface waters and the atmosphere, or is stored for long periods of time in the ocean depths. Webster’s Dictionary defines a vicious cycle as “ a reciprocal cause and effect in which two or more elements intensify and aggravate each other, worsening the situation.”. (Podcast), Reserves Advance “Blue Carbon” Approach to Conserving Wetlands, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Carbon cycle, in biology, circulation of carbon in various forms through nature. Carbon is used by plants to build leaves and stems, which are then digested by animals and used for cellular growth. Carbon dioxide … Step 1- Diffusion and Photosynthesis: Carbon is held in sea water. the way that carbon is exchanged between different living organisms on Earth and between living organisms and the environment, for example, when plants take carbon dioxide from the air, and when animals eat plants (Definition of the carbon cycle from the Cambridge Academic Content Dictionary © Cambridge University Press) These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'carbon cycle.' 2021. When new life is formed, carbon forms key molecules like protein and DNA. The carbon cycle is 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. So to conclude, CO2 diffusion into the oceans is a natural part of the carbon cycle, and the oceans are supposed to contain upwards of 90% of the worlds CO2. Carbon can be stored in a variety of reservoirs, including plants and animals, which is why they are considered carbon life forms. Carbon, in the form of carbon dioxide, is even a part of the air we breathe. carbon-nitrogen cycle: n. A chain of thermonuclear reactions in which nitrogen isotopes are formed in intermediate stages and carbon acts essentially as a catalyst to convert four hydrogen atoms into one helium atom with the emission of two positrons. Since our planet and its atmosphere form a closed environment, the amount of carbon in this system does not change. “Carbon cycle.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/carbon%20cycle. What is the carbon cycle? Delivered to your inbox! The Carbon Cycle Step 1 Carbon enters the atmosphere as carbon dioxide from respiration (breathing) and combustion (burning). Send us feedback. The nitrogen cycle. 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