the solid part of the earth consisting of the crust and outer mantle

part of Earth in which life exists including land, water, and air or atmosphere

A thin layer of gases surrounding Earth

all the waters on the earth's surface, such as lakes and seas, and sometimes including water over the earth's surface, such as clouds.

the movement of carbon from the nonliving environment into living things and back

Describes living factors in the environment.

non-living things in an environment

fossil fuels, soils and sediments, solutes in oceans, plant and animal biomass, and the atmosphere

a colorless, odorless gas produced by burning carbon and organic compounds and by respiration. It is naturally present in air (about 0.03 percent) and is absorbed by plants in photosynthesis.

An organism that can make its own food.

An organism that obtains energy by feeding on other organisms

An organism that breaks down wastes and dead organisms

Dead organic matter

a natural fuel such as coal or gas, formed in the geological past from the remains of living organisms.

Conversion of light energy from the sun into chemical energy.

The process by which cells break down simple food molecules to release the energy they contain.

a forest, ocean, or other natural environment viewed in terms of its ability to absorb carbon dioxide from the atmosphere.

A body or process that releases carbon dioxide into the atmosphere

a circular process in which a system's output serves as input to that same system

warming that results when solar radiation is trapped by the atmosphere

The type of weathering in which rock is physically broken into smaller pieces

The process that breaks down rock through chemical changes

A feedback cycle in which output of one type acts as input that moves the system in the same direction. The input and output drive the system further toward one extreme or another.

A feedback cycle in which output of one type acts as input that moves the system in the opposite direction. The input and output essentially neutralize each other's effects, stabilizing the system.

Processes by which rock, sand, and soil are broken down and carried away (i.e. weathering, glaciation)

breaks up rocks from repeated freezing and thawing of ice in cracks in rocks

Process in which sediment is laid down in new locations.

A mechanical weathering process which removes protruding overlying layers and exposing the weathered down dome of the underlying layers

roots growing under rocks causing it to break

The grinding away of rock by other rock particles carried in water, ice, or wind

A chemical change in which oxygen turns iron minerals in rock to rust.

Rain containing acids that form in the atmosphere when industrial gas emissions (especially sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxides) combine with water.

An attraction between molecules of different substances

Attraction between molecules of the same substance

Water- due to its polarity and ability to dissolve many different solutes

the transfer of carbon through organisms in a food web

The burning of a fuel source that contains hydrocarbons

Having been changed into a remnant, impression, or trace of an organism of past geologic ages that has been preserved in the earth's crust