Feedback loops
Carbon cycle
Water cycle
Implications for life on Earth
Ice melts bc CC => less albedo effect => more energy absorbed => increased warming => more ice melts
CC melts permafrost => releases CO2 + CH4 (both GHGs) => GW increases => more permafrost melts
CC increases wildire chance => wildfires release carbon in plants as GHGs (bio-atmo) => GHGs increase CC => more wildfires happen
CC increases ocean temperatures => ocean can store less carbon => more carbon in atmos => more CC
Higher CO2 levels and temps increase photosynthesis => more phytoplankton/plant growth globally => more CO2 taken out of atmosphere => CC slowing and eventually reversing to pre-warming levels => plant growth back to normal
On geological scales: CO2 absorbed by condensed water (cloud) forming carbonic acid => acid rain dissolves silica rocks and forms carbonates => runoff takes these to ocean => marine organisms build shells and bodies with calcium carbonates (release a third of CO2 to atmos) => organisms die and build up on ocean floor => stores carbon on tectonic plates
In times of more CO2 => more global warming => more acid rain and weathering => more runoff and storage in ocean
Ocean acidification: sudden increase in atmos CO2 bc humans => much more atmos-ocean diffusion of CO2 => ocean becomes 26% more acidic (8.15-8.05pH) and less carbonates => more difficult for marine organisms to build shells + coral reefs hard=> endangers marine ecosystems + the more carbon in the ocean, the less it can absorb
Human intervention in carbon cycle transfers to mitigate climate change
Climate change
420 ppm carbon in atmosphere
Carbon capture and storage
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Afforesting and reforesting
Mitigation involves:
- Using new technologies
- Using clean energy sources
- Changing people's behaviour
- Making older technology more energy efficient
Soil sequestration
Crop rotation
Production of biochar
Residue mulching
No-till farming
Removes about 2 GtC per year - 4% of anthropogenic emissions
Involves capturing CO2 directly from industrial sources and storing it deep underground, in either gaseous, carbonate or supercritical form