Science:

1. Photosynthesis

Plants pull carbon dioxide out of the air through photosynthesis. Even
though carbon dioxide makes up less than 1% of the atmosphere, it plays
a major role for living things.

With CO and H O in the atmosphere, photosynthesis produces

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sugars like glucose. This is the plant material that plants synthesize on
their own.

If you have the right conditions, this process can repeat for centuries.
Not only does photosynthesis pulls carbon dioxide out of the
atmosphere, but it fuels all living things as a source of energy.1

2. Decomposition

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By mostly using sunlight, water, and carbon dioxide, plants can grow. In
turn, animals consume food for energy using O and giving off CO .
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Alternatively, they die, decay, and decompose repeating for millions of

years.

Decomposition is the process of breaking down plants. Over vast periods

of time, layers of sediment build on each other. Because of the pressure
and heat from within the Earth’s crust, it generates fossil fuels. Much of
this happened during the Carboniferous Era.

For example, coal, oil, and natural gas (methane) are some of the
common fossil fuels. Over the long term, the decomposition of dead
matter generates these fossil fuel products. Anaerobic decomposition
involves bacteria breaking down organic matter such as glucose into
CO and methane (CH ). The nutrient cycle recycles inorganic and
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organic material in the soil through the process of decomposition. Then,

it goes back again through the same process again.

3. Respiration
You and I are both made of carbon. We consume plants. But we also
breathe in the air, which has carbon in the form of carbon dioxide.

Animals rely on plants for food, energy, and oxygen. Our cells require
oxygen to break down the food we consume through cellular respiration.

Once consumed, carbon dioxide is released into the atmosphere because

of cell respiration. In turn, this CO produced from respiring cells can be
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used in photosynthesis again.

In other words, plants use solar energy to break apart that same carbon
dioxide in the air. Through photosynthesis, it uses that same carbon for
plant material in turn releasing oxygen again.

4. Combustion
Our cars use the energy released by burning fossil fuels. And carbon is
also a pollutant as carbon dioxide.

We extract fossil fuels, combustion involves burning them to release

energy. But a by-product of combustion is that it releases carbon dioxide
back into the atmosphere. And too much CO2 increases the greenhouse
effect.

Because we deplete our oil reserves by adding CO into the air daily, it
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affects the carbon cycle with an imbalance of oxygen and carbon.

Carbon dioxide is one of the greenhouse gases contributing to climate
change.

But there is a limit to how much fossil fuels we can extract. Over
millions of years, phytoplankton resting on the ocean surface
photosynthesizes and takes in CO .2

Using sunlight creates a molecule called glucose (C6H12O6) and sinks

to the bottom of the ocean. Humans discovered these fossil fuels beneath
the ocean. We started to drill the ancient plankton, which over millions
of years ago, became the oil we use today.

Long-term carbon cycle summary

Today, you’ve learned how carbon cycles from the atmosphere and then
into plants and living things. But the distinction between the short-term
carbon cycle is that this cycle takes millions of years to come full circle.

Instead of carbon converting into sugars, carbon is re-purposed into

fossil fuels like coal. When plants are buried and compacted over
millions of years, they become hydrocarbons.

When you drive your gas-powered car, you tap into Earth’s carbon
reserves deposited hundreds of million years ago. These fossil fuels are
released into the air as carbon dioxide and water vapor.

It may stay in the atmosphere for a while, but eventually, plants

consume it during photosynthesis. So that same weight from the tank of
gasoline gets converted into wood or plant material by photosynthesis.

What Is the Carbon Cycle?

Carbon is a chemical element that is an essential part of all living
organisms. It is found in the bodies of plants, animals, and people.
Carbon dioxide is constantly being released from burning fossil fuels,
plants, and animal respiration. The amount of carbon dioxide in our
atmosphere affects global warming.

Math: