HOW DOES THE BIOSPHERE SUPPORT LIFE ?

The term ‘‘Biosphere’’ was first coined by geologist Eduard Suess in 1875,
which he defined as the place on the earth’s surface where life dwells. The biosphere
also known as the ecosphere, is the worldwide sum of all ecosystems. In other words,
the biosphere is the space on or near earth’s surface that contains and supports living
organisms.

Biosphere is the most important life supporting system. For organisms to live,
certain environmental conditions (such as proper temperature and moisture) must
exist, and the organisms must be supplied with energy and nutrients. All the animal
and mineral nutrients necessary for life are contained within earth’s biosphere.
In addition, the biosphere sustains life, both in the food and the air which are most
important for life to survive. The energy and the protein need to build bodies of life
comes from things in the biosphere.
The biosphere as a life support system for the plant, helping to regulate the
composition of the atmosphere, maintaining soil health and regulating the
hydrological (water) cycle.
For animals and birds biosphere provide food, shelter, water, climatic condition and
maintain ecosystem.
All of these helps prove that biosphere is a life support system.

WHAT WOULD HAPPEN IF THERE WAS NO BIOSPHERE ?

The biosphere is as important as life itself because it is all of life. Without the
biosphere, the Earth would be a lifeless planet such as Mars or Venus. Life began some
3.5 billion years ago in the oceans of an Earth very different from what we see today. Early
forms of life were very simple single celled organisms, somewhat like modern bacteria,
that somehow obtained the ability to reproduce themselves spontaneously. Through eons
of geologic time, other more complex organisms evolved and eventually the diversity of life
was able to inhabit the dry lands and skies as well as the oceans. Many of these
organisms, such as the dinosaur, no longer exist. Others that we know of today, including
ourselves, have only been around for a few million years or less.
Life is fragile. Because the biosphere is made up of all life, it too is fragile. Humans can
have a huge impact on the biosphere, in both good and bad ways. The growth of the
human population on Earth means there is less room for other species. Because of this,
many types of plants and animals have been partially or completely wiped out. The
biosphere is important to people because we can have such a profound impact on it.
Prepared by:- aminur_rahman

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