Abiotic Cycles

Water Cycle Water exists in the ocean (75%), rivers, lakes streams, underground aquifers, and the atmosphere. The water cycle is the how water moves between these places. 5 ways

Evaporation water returns to the atmosphere from lakes, rivers, oceans, etc in the form of vapor. 

Transporation water returning to the atmosphere in the form of vapor from plants

Condensation Water vapor becomes liquid in the form of clouds

Precipitation Liquid water from clouds falls back to earth as rain, sleet, snow, or hail

Run Off Water from precipitation flows back into lakes, rivers, streams, ocean, etc.

Carbon Cycle Carbon cycles from the atmosphere to organisms and back

Photosynthesis Plants use carbon in carbon dioxide from the atmosphere to make glucose.

Cell Respiration Consumers get carbon from glucose by eating plants. Consumers then use the glucose to make ATP and carbon is returned to the atmosphere as carbon dioxide.

Fossil Fuels When organisms die, their bodies have trapped carbon in them. They eventually decay into petroleum When we burn petroleum based fossil fuels (gas, oil) we release the trapped carbon as carbon dioxide.

Nitrogen Cycle Nitrogen cycles from the atmosphere into the ground, into organisms, and back. We use nitrogen to make our nucleic acids Almost 80% of air is made of nitrogen, but it is in a form we cannot use.

Nitrogen Fixation Bacteria that live in soil and in some plant roots (beans, peas) can turn nitrogen from the air into a form plants can absorb. Lighting can also do fixation

Ammonification Consumers get nitrogen by eating the plants When consumers die or release waste, decomposers return nitrogen to the soil (ammonification)

Denitrification Some bacteria specialize in breaking down nitrates and returning nitrogen to the atmosphere.