To understand what is the carbon cycle, It is important to know that all living organisms, whether they are autotrophs or heterotrophs, are formed by organic molecules such as carbohydrates, proteins, lipids and nucleic acids, and that all these compounds organic have carbon atoms in its composition.
But... you might be wondering, how do living beings manage to absorb carbon?
Have you ever heard of carbon dioxide (CO2)? That gas that is present in the atmosphere and is one of the necessary ingredients for photosynthesis carried out by autotrophic beings, that is, by plants?
Yeah, it all starts with the photosynthesis that vegetables do. In the article “Photosynthesis in plants”, we saw that all vegetables are capable of photosynthesis and that one of the products of this phenomenon is glucose, which is consumed by the vegetable itself, but also by other animals, which are not capable of producing their own food, that is, you heterotrophs. In the article “Food chain”, we are able to understand very well how animals that cannot produce their own food manage to obtain it through vegetables.
In the food chain, the energy stored in a living being is transferred to another when it consumes it.
Now that we know where the carbon that makes up our organic molecules comes from, let's see how this chemical element cycles in nature.
Through photosynthesis, plants are able to use the carbon dioxide present in the atmosphere
First, plants use the carbon dioxide present in the atmosphere to carry out the photosynthesis, turning it into organic matter. Then, part of this organic matter is consumed by the vegetables themselves in their breathing, the other part being stored in their tissues.
When a heterotrophic being feeds on any vegetable, it consumes that stored organic matter. This matter is used in the animal's metabolic processes, such as breathing, for example, that releases carbon dioxide into the environment. The breathing process of all living beings, whether micro-organisms, animals or plants, releases carbon dioxide into the atmosphere and, consequently, carbon atoms.
THE organic matter decomposition, that is, the decomposition of the bodies of living beings after their death, also releases carbon dioxide into the atmosphere.
Another process that releases large amounts of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere is the burning fossil fuels, such as oil and coal.
The burning of fossil fuels constitutes a great source of carbon dioxide for the atmosphere
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