carbon flows

• short term/ fast carbon cycle


  movement of carbon from living things to the atmosphere and ocean which moves around x1000 more than the slow carbon cycle
• long term/ slow carbon cycle

  movement of carbon between atmospheric, oceanic and lithospheric stores
• photosynthesis 


  transfers carbon stored the atmosphere to biomass, enabling plants to grow
• respiration


  transfers carbon from living organisms to the atmosphere which releases energy by breaking down sugars
• decomposition


  transfers dead biomass to the atmosphere and soil so bacteria and fungi break down organisms so co2 and methane is released into the soil
• combustion


  transfers carbon stored in living, dead or decomposed biomass to the atmosphere by burning
• diffusion


  moves co2 between the atmosphere and ocean in either direction
• burial and compaction


  when shelled marine organisms die, their shelled fragments fall to the ocean floor and become compacted overtime to form limestone
• sequestration 


  carbon is removed from the atmosphere and stored in liquid or soil form
• weathering


  process where rocks are broken down, fragments break off and fall to the ground where they remain
• tectonic activity


  over thousands of years the sea flaw moves towards destructive plate boundaries where they are sub ducted into the mantle. The extreme heat and pressure releases carbon into the rock
• biological ocean pump


  driven by ocean phytoplankton absorbing co2 by photosynthesis
• physical ocean pump 


  movement of co2 from the atmosphere to the ocean via diffusion as co2 is stored in the surface of the ocean
• net primary production (NPP)

  amount of biomass or carbon produced by primary producers per unit areas and time

  NPP = gross primary production (GPP) - respiration
• carbon budget 


  the transfer and stores of carbon within the cycle which is the balance of inputs and outputs of carbon
• mass balance 


  when inputs of carbon are equal to the outputs of carbon creating a balance