Water and Carbon Cycles

• Cycle


  A process that repeats itself constantly
• Humans recycle things daily
• The earth recycles resources constantly
• There is only a certain amount of matter on the planet which cannot be created or destroyed
• The water cycle


  1. Evaporation

  2. Condensation

  3. Precipitation/rainfall

  4. Infiltration

  5. Runoff

  6. Transpiration

  
• Evaporation


  Changing of liquid water to gas, most takes place from the oceans
• Condensation


  Changing from gas back to a liquid, as evaporated liquid rises it gets colder in the air and the droplets get bigger, they come together to form clouds
• Precipitation/rainfall


  As the rain droplets continue to rise, they get colder and bigger until too heavy and they drop to earth
• Infiltration


  Rainwater soaks through the ground to form groundwater, this supplies the springs and wells
• Runoff


  Some water runs off the earth into rivers and streams
• Transpiration


  Plants suck up water from their roots but lose it from their leaves
• Organic substance


  Any substance that contains carbon
• The carbon cycle


  1. Carbon moves from the atmosphere to the plants

  2. Carbon moves from the plants to the animals - eating

  3. Carbon moves from the plants and animals to the ground when they die - fossil fuels

  4. Carbon moves from living things to the atmosphere - respiration

  5. Carbon moves from fossil fuels back to the atmosphere - burning

  
• Most of the carbon in the atmosphere is absorbed by the oceans
• Carbon sink


  A place in nature that stores carbon, e.g. a forest full of trees/seas/plankton

  
• Carbon source


  A place where carbon is given off or released, e.g. a volcano