Summary
Summary Water and carbon cycle flash cards
- Module
- Water and carbon cycles
- Institution
- OCR
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Water and Carbon (Paper 1 - Physical Systems)Revision 1
Revision 2
Revision 3
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You can use the columns on the right to keep track of this.
Warning: This checklist is the minimum knowledge that is required to do well in this examination.
In addition, you must be able to demonstrate skills of observation, explanation and evaluation,
and in order to achieve the highest marks you will need to extend your understanding of each
aspect of the topic beyond what is stated here.
How important are water and carbon to life on Earth?
Understanding how water and carbon support life on Earth
• Explain why the amount of water stored in the atmosph
The distribution and size of stores in the carbon cycle
• Explain why the amount of carbon stored in the biosphe
The distribution and size of stores in the water cycle
• Photosynthesis is the most important process in the car
The inputs, outputs and processes of the carbon cycle
• The oceans are the key driver of the water cycle. Discus
The inputs, outputs and processes of the water cycle
How do the water and carbon cycles operate in contrasting locations—the Amazon Rainforest.
Understanding how the water and carbon cycles operate in the Amazon • Human (or Physical) factors are the most important in a
Physical factors affecting the flows and stores in the water and carbon cycles • Explain how physical factors can be responsible for chan
Natural and human factors affecting the flows and stores of water in a drainage basin
• Human (or Physical) factors are the most important in a
The impact of human activity on carbon flows and stores
• Explain how tropical rainforests can be managed to limi
Strategies to manage the rainforest that have positive effects on the water and carbon cycles
How do the water and carbon cycles operate in contrasting locations—the Arctic Tundra.
Understanding how the water and carbon cycles operate in Tundra
• To what extent are the water (and/or carbon) cycles sim
biomes? [16]
Physical factors affecting the flows and stores in the water and carbon cycles
• Human (or Physical) factors have a greater impact on th
rainforests. Discuss. [16]
Seasonal changes in the water and carbon cycles in Tundra
• Human (or Physical) factors are the most important in a
, The importance of water and carbon (1)
Why is water important on Earth? How is carbon distributed and stored on Earth?
• Water covers about 70% of the Earth’s surface and is the only substance on Earth that exists in all three states of • The lithosphere is the
physical matter naturally—gas, liquid and solid. largest store of carbon
• Water vapour influences the greenhouse effect, clouds and ice fields impact upon reflectivity (albedo) and liquid however the processes
water allows life to exist. that drive change in this
• Water is not distributed evenly and with fewer than 10 countries possessing 60% of the world’s available fresh store are slow and long-
water supply, future food production and consumption of water may result in conflict over this essential term
resource. • The hydrosphere,
• Water is not only used in human consumption but also in industry, particularly for cooling in thermal power pedosphere, cryosphere,
generation. atmosphere and
• Water is essential to health—3900 children die each day due to dirty water or poor hygiene, 1.8 million deaths biosphere, whilst all
per year from diarrhoeal diseases including cholera smaller stores are driven
• Water is vital for plants too with about 60% of land-based precipitation returned to the atmosphere via by the fast (short-term)
transpiration. Water also maintains the cellular structural integrity of plants. It is also a vital part of the carbon cycle
photosynthesis reaction.
Why is carbon important on Earth? What are the main inputs and outputs of the wat
• It can easily bond with other elements and is estimated to form the basis of 95% of all compounds. It is present in • Precipitation, solar radiation (used for evapora
our rocks (carbonate), as CO2 in our atmosphere and dissolved in our oceans. into the sea, percolation
• Carbon allows the formation of carbohydrates, lipids, proteins and nucleic acids, all of which are responsible for
sustaining complex life forms What are the main inputs and outputs of the carb
• Stores of carbon are changing rapidly associated with permafrost thawing, anthropogenic sources, ocean
circulation and climatic warming and thus understanding the stores and flows is essential in future planning. • Precipitation, photosynthesis,
weathering, volcanic eruptions,
respiration, combustion
There are three key concepts to understand cycling in a systems framework:
An input is a process that will move water
1. Stores – the amount of material of interest (e.g. water) held within a part of the system. Essentially how much or carbon into a store. An output will
water and where it is. Stores are expressed in units of mass. remove water or carbon from a store.
2. Fluxes – measurements of the rate of flow of material between the stores. Measured in mass per time. Defining inputs and outputs depends on
3. Processes – the physical mechanisms that drive the flux of material between stores. E.g. evaporation drives the the system boundaries that you have
flux of water from the sea to the atmosphere store. defined.
How is water distributed and stored on Earth? On a global scale, both the water and
carbon cycles are closed systems. A more
, The importance of water and carbon (2)
What are the processes of the water What are the processes of the carbon cycle?
cycle?
• There are two carbon cycles: the fast and sl
Evaporation: • The fast carbon cycle involves rapid intercha
• The phase change of liquid to biosphere. The timescales tend to be of a da
vapour. Heat drives this process • The slow carbon cycle involves millennial-sc
as it breaks the molecular and then rock. The crust is then subducted a
bonds of the water. back into the atmosphere. This occurs over
Transpiration:
• The diffusion of water vapour
to the atmosphere from the
leaf stomata.
• It is responsible for around 10%
of moisture in the atmosphere.
It is driven by temperature and
wind speed.
Condensation:
• The phase change from vapour
to liquid.
• This process results in cloud formation with three main types—cumuliform (flat-based with vertical
development, often formed by convection), stratiform (with formation driven by advection, where an air mass
moves over cooler underlying air) and cirrus clouds (which form at high altitudes and are thin and wispy thus
having little impact upon the water cycle).
• Lapse rates describe the rate at which an air parcel moving vertically within the atmosphere will cool. There are Precipitation:
three types: environmental (ELR = 6.5oC / km), dry adiabatic (DALR—where adiabatic means cooling by • Atmospheric CO2 dissolves in rainwater to f
expansion = 10oC / km), and saturated adiabatic (SALR = 7oC / km). increased the acidity of rainwater and thus
Precipitation: harmful.
• The water and ice that falls from clouds. Photosynthesis:
• Most rain will flow quickly into streams and rivers however in high latitude and / or high altitude catchments, • Transfer of carbon from the atmosphere to
precipitation may be snow or ice and thus have a significant lag time between snowfall and runoff. • Approximate flows are 120 gigatonnes per y
• High intensity rainfall may result in saturated overland flow (where the soil is saturated and infiltration can no
longer occur). 6 CO2 + 6
• Duration of the precipitation may also impact upon rates of infiltration and overland flow. Weathering:
• Seasonal variations, e.g. East Africa, the South-East Asian Monsoon, in the Mediterranean, may have a rainy • The in situ breakdown of rocks. Many types
season and so river discharge may be high with flooding likely. rainwater and so carbonation in particular r
Interception: limestones into streams, rivers, oceans and
• Whereby vegetation intercepts precipitation. estimated that chemical weathering transfe
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