carbon cycle

Cards (2)

  • carbon sinks -
    • Reservoirs of “locked-up” carbon
    • Locked-up means not available to the atmosphere and for use
    • Abiotic sinks – limestone, chalk, fossil fuels, the oceans
    • Biotic sinks – humus, plants via photosynthesis/living organisms
    • Biggest sinks on Earth are the oceans, marine sediments and sedimentary rocks
  • in oceans -
    • Carbon Dioxide dissolves into the water at the surface
    • It is taken up by phytoplankton and used in photosynthesis
    • Carbon is also stored in the shells of marine creatures and in coral reefs
    • These processes remove dissolved carbon dioxide from the water and ensure that the concentration in the water is kept low enough that more is constantly dissolving in.
    • Atlantic ocean moves carbon rich water downward rapidly due to the North Atlantic current maintaining a concentration gradient (this allows for faster removal of carbon from the atmosphere)