海洋的新故事
相关概念视频
Overview
An ecosystem is the interaction between all abiotic and biotic factors in an environment and can be classified as terrestrial or aquatic. Terrestrial ecosystems are categorized based on the climate, including annual temperature, rainfall, and seasonality. Aquatic ecosystems are separated further into freshwater and marine, and then by depth, which influences water temperature and the amount of sunlight that penetrates the water.
Terrestrial Ecosystems
Terrestrial ecosystems are...
The Earth’s hydrosphere includes all of the areas where the storage and movement of water occurs. Since water is the basis of all living processes, the cycling of water is extremely important to ecosystem dynamics.
The water cycle begins as the sun warms surface water on the land and in oceans, causing it to evaporate and enter the atmosphere as vapor. The water vapor condenses into clouds and eventually falls as precipitation in the form of rain, snow or hail.
After falling back to the...
Sulfur, an important element in the chemical makeup of proteins, is recycled through the atmosphere and aquatic and terrestrial environments. Found in the atmosphere as sulfur dioxide (SO2), sulfur is released by decaying organisms, weathered rocks, geothermal vents, volcanos, and burning fossil fuels. It is deposited into the ecosystem, cycled through the biotic community, and either released back into the atmosphere as gas or deposited in marine sediment for long-term storage and eventual...
Carbon is the basis of all organic matter on Earth, and is recycled through the ecosystem in two primary processes: one in which carbon is exchanged among living organisms, and one in which carbon is cycled over long periods of time through fossilized organic remains, weathering of rocks, and volcanic activity. Human activities, including increased agricultural practices and the burning of fossil fuels, has greatly affected the balance of the natural carbon cycle.
Biological Carbon Cycle
All...
Changes in the environment of the early Earth drove the evolution of organisms. As prokaryotic organisms in the oceans began to photosynthesize, they produced oxygen. Eventually, oxygen saturated the oceans and entered the air, resulting in an increase in atmospheric oxygen concentration, known as the oxygen revolution approximately 2.3 billion years ago. Therefore, organisms that could use oxygen for cellular respiration had an advantage. More than 1.5 years ago, eukaryotic cells and...
Overview
Weather refers to the current state of atmospheric conditions at a specific time and place. Weather is temporary and is influenced by the interactions between the sun, atmosphere (gases around the Earth), hydrosphere (the water bodies of the Earth), and geosphere (the land portion of the Earth). As all of these factors differ across location and time, different weather can be observed across the planet.
Solar Radiation and the Greenhouse Effect
Solar radiation penetrates the...

