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Phosphorus enters the environment from rocks or deposits laid down on the earth many years ago. The phosphate rock is commercially available form is called apatite. Other deposits may be from fossilized bone or bird droppings called guano. Weathering and erosion of rocks gradually releases phosphorus as phosphate ions which are soluble in water. Land plants need phosphate as a fertilizer or nutrient.Phosphate is incorporated into many molecules essential for life such as ATP, adenosine triphosphate, which is important in the storage and use of energy. It is also in the backbone of DNA and RNA which is involved with coding for genetics.
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ProfessorThe phosphorus cycle involves weathering of rocks, releasing phosphorus into the soil. Plants take up phosphorus from the soil, animals consume plants, and phosphorus is returned to the soil through animal waste and decomposition. Phosphorus can also be leached into water bodies where it can form sediment or be incorporated into marine organisms.
There is a very good diagram below
The diagram refers to 'detritivores', which are decomposers (e.g. bacteria, fungi). They obtain nutrients by feeding on (and decomposing) organic matter which is usually already dead.
The phosphorus cycle describes the movement of phosphorus through the lithosphere, hydrosphere, and biosphere. The atmosphere isn't really invloved as phosphorus is most commonly found as a solid.
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What is the phosphonis cycle?
The phosphorus cycle is the biogeochemical cycle that describes the movement of phosphorus through the lithosphere, hydrosphere, and biosphere. It involves processes such as weathering of rocks, absorption by plants, and return to the soil through decomposition. Phosphorus is essential for various biological processes, including DNA and RNA synthesis.
What drives the phosphorus cycle?
The phosphorus cycle is primarily driven by geological processes such as weathering of rocks, erosion, and volcanic activity that release phosphorus into the environment. Once in the environment, phosphorus is cycled through biological processes as plants take up phosphorus from the soil, animals consume plants, and phosphorus is returned to the soil through decomposition and waste. Human activities such as agriculture and industry also play a significant role in influencing the phosphorus cycle through processes like fertilizer use and wastewater discharge.
What processes are involved in the water cycle?
The processes involved in water cycle are: Evaporation, Condensation, Precipitation and Collection. These are the important processes that are involved.
Which biogeochemical cycle does not include a major path in which the substances cycles through the atmosphere?
The phosphorus cycle does not have a major atmospheric component like other cycles such as the carbon, nitrogen, and water cycles. In the phosphorus cycle, phosphorus is primarily found in rocks and sediments, and it is released through weathering processes into soil and water where it is taken up by organisms.
Which processes locks phosphorus in a long-term cycle?
organic materials buried at the bottom of the oceans
