3.2 Introduction to Biogeochemical Cycles & the Water Cycle

What is an ecosystem?

all the living organisms in a given area as well as the factors with which they interact

What do all organisms living on Earth need?

energy to carry out life processes

Where does energy start?

the sun

What are producers?

organisms that rely on the sun's energy, water, and carbon dioxide to create glucose and oxygen

How do producers create glucose and oxygen from the sin's energy, water, and carbon dioxide?

by doing photosynthesis

Producers are also known as what?

autotrophs

What are autotrophs?

organisms that make their own food

What are consumers?

organisms that use oxygen and glucose to put carbon dioxide and water back into the atmosphere

How do consumers put carbon dioxide and water back into the atmosphere?

cellular respiration

What are consumers also known as?

heterotrophs

What are heterotrophs?

organisms that cannot make their own food and must get energy and nutrients from eating

How does energy flow through an ecosystem?

the sun to producers to consumers to dcomposers

How does energy enter an ecosystem?

it enters an ecosystem as sunlight

How does energy exit an ecosystem?

it exits as heat

What are nutrients?

chemical substances that the body needs to grow, make energy, and stay healthy

What are two examples of nutrients?

water and minerals

More than 95% of most organisms' bodies are made of how many elements?

4 elements

What are the 4 elements that make up more than 95% of most organisms' bodies?

carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, and nitrogen

What is a biogeochemical cycle?

the process in which elements, chemical compounds, and other forms of matter are passed from one organism to another and from one part of the biosphere to another

What are the 4 biogeochemical cycles?

water cycle, carbon cycle, nitrogen cycle, and phosphorus cycle

What is crucial to life?

water

What 4 places can water be found?

bodies of water, stored in the bodies of organisms, in the atmosphere as clouds, stored underground

What is the water cycle?

the movement of water through an ecosystem

How many processes can the water cycle be divided into?

5 processes

What are the 5 processes of the water cycle?

evaporation, precipitation, transpiration, condensation, inflitration

What is evaporation?

the process where liquid water absorbs heat and changes into a gas called water vapor

The gas that liquid water turns into is called what?

water vapor

Water vapor rises from the Earth's surface to where?

the atmosphere

What is transpiration?

the process where plants take up water through their roots and release it as water vapor through tiny pores in their leaves

What is condensation?

the process where warm water vapor in the air cools down and turns back into liquid water droplets or ice crystals

What does condensation form?

clouds or dew

What is precipitation?

the water that is released from clouds in the atmosphere and falls back on the Earth's surface

What are 4 examples of precipitation?

rain, snow, sleet, hail

What is infiltration?

the process where water on the ground surface soaks down into the soil, replenishing soil moisture and underground water supply