Carbon

Carbon

1. Carbon is the major chemical constituent of most living matter including human-beings. Yet by weight, carbon is not one of the most abundant elements on the Earth‘s crust.

2. Earth's atmosphere, ocean, land, and living things can be both sources and sinks of carbon.

3. The processes of photosynthesis, respiration, death, and decomposition move carbon through the carbon cycle partly as carbon dioxide.

4. In Earth's atmosphere, CO2 is only about 0.03% by volume, but it is an important "greenhouse" gas. It traps in the lower atmosphere much of the heat radiated from the Earth's surface.

5. When it’s in the atmosphere, carbon is combined with two oxygen atoms making a molecule called carbon dioxide (CO2)

6. Plants absorb carbon dioxide and sunlight to make their own food.This process is called photosynthesis. In this process, carbon becomes part of the plant, and the plant releases oxygen

7. When the plants die and are buried under layers of earth for millions of years, they may become fossil fuels like coal, oil and natural gas.

8. The burning of fossil fuels at the presently alarming rate increases global warming. This is due to the increasing amount of greenhouse gases, specifically CO2, which capture heat

9. The excess carbon dioxide from the burning of fossil fuels is responsible for the gradual yet constant rise in temperature over the past few decades.

10. Also, substantial areas of forest have been cut down, removing a pathway for CO2 absorption

11. Great importance is now placed on ways of reducing CO2 emissions and on reducing the CO2 already in the air.

12. Noe Casanova Numero de Control:192190817 Quimica IL

13. All life is based on the element carbon that has the symbol ‘C’ and the atomic number 6.

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