The carbon cycle is a biochemical process that happens within the atmosphere, hydrosphere, biosphere, and geosphere of the earth. The carbon element, through various processes, is exchanged in each of these spheres in a process that ultimately makes the earth able to support life. Among these processes are photosynthesis and cellular respiration. Photosynthesis is one of the primary ways through which carbon dioxide is removed from the atmosphere, along with being directly dissolved into the hydrosphere. Through photosynthesis, light energy from the sun is converted into chemical energy that is then used by plants to power their biological processes (Prentice et al., 2001).
Solar energy is captured by plant parts that have protein chlorophyll components that enable the creation of adenosine triphosphate (ATP), which is generally the energy currency of the plant world. The main enzyme at work here is the RuBisCo, which captures carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, for the light-dependent photosynthetic reactions. If the concentration of carbon dioxide is low, however, a process called cellular photorespiration ensues, through which the RuBisCo binds to oxygen molecules as opposed to binding with carbon dioxide molecules. This process is somewhat disadvantageous to plants since it makes use of energy yet does not produce sugars.
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Other processes that contribute and feed off on the carbon cycle are the water cycle and the nitrogen cycle (Huntington, 2006). The water cycle describes the various processes through which water molecules move through the atmosphere of the earth and on the earth's surface. The nitrogen cycle, on the other hand, describes the movement of nitrogen molecules through the atmosphere and the geosphere in its various forms (stein & Klotz, 2016). All these processes are interdependent since the multiple compounds produced during these processes are each used during the other biogeochemical processes, also demonstrating the interdependence of biological life on each (Pastor & Post, 1986). If the water cycle were to be interfered with, for instance, this would likewise affect both the nitrogen and the carbon cycles.
References
Huntington, T. G. (2006). Evidence for intensification of the global water cycle: review and synthesis. Journal of Hydrology , 319 (1-4), 83-95.
Pastor, J., & Post, W. M. (1986). Influence of climate, soil moisture, and succession on forest carbon and nitrogen cycles. Biogeochemistry , 2 (1), 3-27.
Prentice, I. C., Farquhar, G. D., Fasham, M. J. R., Goulden, M. L., Heimann, M., Jaramillo, V. J., ... & Wallace, D. W. (2001). The carbon cycle and atmospheric carbon dioxide. Cambridge University Press.
Stein, L. Y., & Klotz, M. G. (2016). The nitrogen cycle. Current Biology , 26 (3), R94-R98.
