the biosphere, the highest level.

in #steemstem7 years ago


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the biosphere

Steemians... in the present post I want to talk about the biosphere, the set of the varied biomes existing in the earth forms the biosphere, the thin layer that sustains life and constitutes the outer surface of the planet. Although the location of the biomes depends on many factors, this is a fundamental cause of the location.

Therefore, the biosphere is the one that surrounds the globe including the sea, land and air. Numerous animal species inhabit the hydrosphere, despite the dissolved gases (oxygen and carbon dioxide) that act as a limiting factor.

In the lithosphere, life usually develops in the topsoil layer. Soil animals are found living up to 5 km deep. And in the atmosphere, the upper limit of the biosphere, there is life up to a height of 8 km in the polar zones and 18 km in the equatorial zone.

The Sun is the primary source of energy on Earth and makes the functioning of ecosystems dynamic. The solar energy is absorbed by algae and plants through photosynthesis and transformed into chemical energy, which is stored in the form of starch and glucose, these are taken by animals to be burned (metabolism) thus releasing their energy. Plants also store energy, which is used by animals in their biological processes.

The biosphere has remained stable enough for hundreds of millions of years to allow the evolution of the life forms we know today. However, it is already known that all biological populations and their physical environment make up the biosphere, so that any transformative effect will have an impact on the whole. Air, water or soil pollution endangers the stability of ecosystems and therefore life in the biosphere.

Large-scale divisions of the biosphere into regions with different growth patterns are called biogeographical or ecozonal regions. Initially, six regions were identified: Palaearctica (Europe and Asia), Neo-Artica (North America), Neotropical (Mexico, Central and South America), Ethiopia (Africa), India (Southeast Asia, Philippines, Indonesia) and Australia (Australia and New Guinea). Eight are now recognized: Oceania (Polynesia, Fiji and Micronesia) and Antarctica were added

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living beings can be studied on six levels: the individual (a plant or an animal of a given species), the population (a group of individuals of the same species), the community (several populations of different species), the ecosystem (the place where several communities meet) and the biome (formed by different ecosystems of a geographical area, with the same climate). Earth's biomes constitute the biosphere, the highest organizational level.

the carbon cycle

The carbon cycle is a biogeochemical cycle by which carbon is exchanged between the biosphere, the lithosphere, the hydrosphere and the Earth's atmosphere. Knowledge of this carbon circulation makes it possible to appreciate human intervention in the climate and its effects on climate change.

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Carbon (C) is the fourth most abundant element in the Universe, after hydrogen, helium and oxygen (O). It is the pillar of life as we know it. There are basically two forms of carbon: organic (present in living and dead organisms, and decomposed) and inorganic (present in rocks).

On planet Earth, carbon circulates through the oceans, the atmosphere and the Earth's surface and interior, in a large biogeochemical cycle. This cycle can be divided into two: the slow or geological cycle and the fast or biological cycle.

This cycle is usually considered to be made up of four main carbon reservoirs interconnected by trade routes. Reservoirs are the atmosphere, the terrestrial biosphere (which usually includes freshwater systems and non-living organic material such as soil carbon), the oceans (which include dissolved inorganic carbon, marine organisms and non-living matter), and sediments (which include fossil fuels). Annual carbon movements between reservoirs occur due to various chemical, physical, geological and biological processes. The ocean contains the largest active carbon background near the Earth's surface, but the deep ocean part is not rapidly exchanged with the atmosphere.

The overall balance is the balance between carbon exchanges (revenues and losses) between reservoirs or between a specific cycle path (e. g. atmosphere - biosphere). An examination of the carbon balance of a fund or reservoir can provide information on whether it functions as a source or storehouse for carbon dioxide.

the nitrogen cycle

It should be noted that living beings have a significant amount of nitrogen in their chemical composition. Oxidized nitrogen is received through salts (nitrate) and transformed into amino acids, the most common of which are integrated into proteins.
In the meantime, for nitrate to reappear, the intervention of organisms that extract it from biomass and return it in the reduced form of ammonium ion is necessary.

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However, since ammonium and nitrate are very soluble substances that the current and infiltration carry them very easily towards the sea, it would not be possible for this element to remain at atmospheric level after its conversion, so the oceans would be very rich in nitrogen and the most continental masses, unfortunately, would not have this chemical element as important for life as we have already seen.
However, there are two other processes that allow continents not to become biological deserts as a result of nitrogen deficiency: nitrogen fixation and denitrification. It should be noted that both processes are reciprocally symmetrical.

In nitrogen fixation, soluble compounds are generated from atmospheric nitrogen, while denitrification, which is a form of anaerobic respiration, will return nitrogen to the atmosphere.
Thanks to these two processes it is possible to maintain a remarkable nitrogen deposit in the air, representing 78% of the volume.

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Relates the tomosphere, biosphere, hydrosphere and earth's crust. Evaporation, especially from the sea, but also from rivers, lakes, soil and vegetation - evapotranspiration - provides the atmosphere with most humidity, in the form of water vapor. The steam, when cooled, condenses or freezes and falls in the form of rain, hail or snow. Three-quarters of the rainfall falls on the sea. the rest reaches the continents. half of the water that falls on the earth evaporates again soon after. The remainder is intercepted by vegetation, can be returned to the oceans by rivers or seeps into the subsoil, where it is absorbed by plants, flows through underground currents and lakes or reaches directly to the sea, this is a brief but very accurate explanation of everything that happens during the water cycle.

in the high mountains, living beings are confronted with very low temperatures, strong winds and a rarefied air. Vegetation predominates in padded bushes.

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In the rainforest or humid tropical forest, high temperatures and high humidity are maintained throughout the year. Therefore, plant and animal life has diversified there more than anywhere else on earth.

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the conifers of the boreal or taiga forest (the world's largest plant formation) are well adapted to cool climates with cold winters and relatively low rainfall

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he tundra extends over subpolar lands, where temperatures do not exceed 10º. Lack of tree vegetation: The soil is covered with lichens, from which reindeer or caribou feeds.

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the tropical savannah occurs in climates with scarce and irregular rainfall. It is characterized by large grassy areas with few trees and undergrowth, and the fauna includes large herbivores and carnivores.

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in the very dry environment of the decider, with large daily variations in temperature, plant and animal life is very limited. Only some species are adapted to the scarce and irregular water availability.

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source of information

http://www.biodiversidad.gob.mx/v_ingles/planet/whatis_bios.html

https://www.nationalgeographic.org/encyclopedia/biosphere/

http://www.unesco.org/new/en/natural-sciences/environment/ecological-sciences/biosphere-reserves/main-characteristics/

http://www.softschools.com/facts/earth_systems/biosphere_facts/3229/

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