Date Name
Period
Exploration-of-the-Carbon-Cyclem
NGsss: |
SC.912.E.7.1 Analyze the movement of matter and energy through the different biogeochemical
cycles, including water and carbon. I
Background: Carbon is an essential component of living things. The carbon-cycle is a process by
which carbon is cycled between the atmosphere, land, water, and organisms. Carbon enters a short-
term cycle in an ecosystem when producers convert CO2 in the atmosphere into carbohydrates
during photosynthesis. Consumers obtain these carbohydrates when they eat producers. Consumers
break down these carbohydrates during cellular respiration releasing some of the carbon as carbon
dioxide. Some carbon enters a long-term cycle. Carbon is part of the molecules of living things and it
is released only when the organism dies. Fossil fuels are essentially stored carbon-left-over from
bodies of plants and animals that died millions of years ago. I