A.

WATER CYCLE
Heat from the Sun causes water on Earth (in oceans, lakes etc) to
evaporate (turn from liquid into gas) and rise into the sky. This
water vapor collects in the sky in the form of clouds.As water
vapor in the clouds cools down it becomes water again, this
process is called condensation.Water falls from the sky in the form
of rain, snow, hail, or sleet, this process is called
precipitation.Oceans and lakes collect water that has fallen. Water
evaporates into the sky again and the cycle continues.
B. CARBON CYCLE
All living things are made of carbon. Carbon is also a part of
the ocean, air, and even rocks. Because the Earth is a dynamic
place, carbon does not stay still. In the atmosphere, carbon is
attached to some oxygen in a gas called carbon dioxide. Plants
use carbon dioxide and sunlight to make their own food and
grow. The carbon becomes part of the plant. Plants that die
and are buried may turn into fossil fuels made of carbon like
coal and oil over millions of years. When humans burn fossil
fuels, most of the carbon quickly enters the atmosphere as
carbon dioxide. Carbon dioxide is a greenhouse gas and traps
heat in the atmosphere. Without it and other greenhouse
gases, Earth would be a frozen world. But humans have
burned so much fuel that there is about 30% more carbon
dioxide in the air today than there was about 150 years ago,
and Earth is becoming a warmer place. In fact, ice cores show
us that there is now more carbon dioxide in the atmosphere
than there has been in the last 420,000 years.
C. OXYGEN CYCLE
Circulation of oxygen in various forms through nature. Free in the air and
dissolved in water, oxygen is second only to nitrogen in abundance among
uncombined elements in the atmosphere. Plants and animals use oxygen
to respire and return it to the air and water as carbon dioxide (CO 2). CO2 is
then taken up by algae and terrestrial green plants and converted into
carbohydrates during the process ofphotosynthesis, oxygen being a by-

product. The waters of the world are the main oxygen generators of the
biosphere; their algae are estimated to replace about 90 percent of all
oxygen used. Oxygen is involved to some degree in all the other
biogeochemical cycles. For example, over time, detritus from living
organisms transfers oxygen-containing compounds such as calcium
carbonates into the lithosphere.
Despite the burning of fossil fuel and the reduction of natural vegetation (on
land and in the sea), the level of atmospheric oxygen appears to be
relatively stable because of the increase in plant productivity resulting from
agricultural advances worldwide.
D. Nitrogen Cycle
The nitrogen cycle is the way that nitrogen in nature is changed
into many different forms that are used by living [organism]s.
Air is about 78% nitrogen. Nitrogen is needed for life. It is an
important part of proteins, DNA, and RNA. In plants, nitrogen is
needed for photosynthesis and growth. [1] Nitrogen fixation is
needed to change the nitrogen in air (N2) into forms that can be
used by life. Most nitrogen fixation is done
by microorganisms called bacteria. These bacteria have
an enzyme that combines N2 with hydrogen gas (H2) to
make ammonia (NH3).
Some of these bacteria live in the roots
of plants (mostly legumes). In these roots, they make ammonia
for the plant and the plant gives them carbohydrates. Other
plants take nitrogen compounds out of the soil through their
roots. All nitrogen in animals comes from eating plants.
Ammonium (NH4) in soil is made by nitrogen-fixing bacteria
and decomposers, bacteria and fungi that break down dead life
into its parts. This process is called ammonification. Ammonium
has a positive charge. It easily joins to clay and humus in the soil.
Ammonia and ammonium are poisonous to fish and other
animals. Sewageand other waste-water is regularly measured
because of this. If ammonia levels are too high, nitrification must
happen.

Nitrification is the change of ammonia and ammonium

to nitrite (NO2) and then to nitrate ( NO3) by bacteria. Because
nitrite and nitrate have a negative chargethey do not easily join to
soil and will wash out of the soil during rain and irrigation. High
nitrate levels in drinking water is harmful for babies and can
cause blue-baby syndrome. [2] High nitrate levels can also cause
too much algae growth in lakes and pools. This can be harmful to
fish and other water animals because the algae uses oxygen that
the animals need. The use of fertilizers is controlled more and
more because of this.
Where there is no oxygen, some bacteria will make nitrate into
nitrogen gas (N2). This starts the nitrogen cycle over again. This
process is called denitrification.
E. Phosporous Cycle
It is in these rocks where the phosphorus cycle begins. When it
rains, phosphates are removed from the rocks (via weathering)
and are distributed throughout both soils and water. Plants take
up the phosphate ions from the soil. The phosphates then
moves from plants to animals when herbivores eat plants
and carnivores eat plants or herbivores. The phosphates
absorbed by animal tissue through consumption eventually
returns to the soil through the excretion of urine and feces, as
well as from the final decomposition of plants and animals after
death.
The same process occurs within the aquatic ecosystem.
Phosphorus is not highly soluble, binding tightly to molecules in
soil, therefore it mostly reaches waters by traveling with runoff
soil particles. Phosphates also enter waterways through
fertilizer runoff, sewage seepage, natural mineral deposits, and
wastes from other industrial processes. These phosphates tend
to settle on ocean floors and lake bottoms. As sediments are
stirred up, phosphates may reenter the phosphorus cycle, but
they are more commonly made available to aquatic organisms
by being exposed through erosion. Water plants take up the
waterborne phosphate which then travels up through
successive stages of the aquatic food chain.

F. Sulfur Cycle
The sulfur cycle contains both atmospheric and terrestrial
processes. Within the terrestrial portion, the cycle begins with
the weathering of rocks, releasing the stored sulfur. The
sulfur then comes into contact with air where it is converted
into sulfate (SO4). The sulfate is taken up by plants and
microorganisms and is converted into organic forms; animals
then consume these organic forms through foods they eat,
thereby moving the sulfur through the food chain. As
organisms die and decompose, some of the sulfur is again
released as a sulfate and some enters the tissues of
microorganisms. There are also a variety of natural sources
that emit sulfur directly into the atmosphere, including
volcanic eruptions, the breakdown of organic matter in
swamps and tidal flats, and the evaporation of water.

Sulfur eventually settles back into the Earth or comes down

within rainfall. A continuous loss of sulfur from terrestrial
ecosystem runoff occurs through drainage into lakes and
streams, and eventually oceans. Sulfur also enters the ocean
through fallout from the Earths atmosphere. Within the ocean,
some sulfur cycles through marine communities, moving
through the food chain. A portion of this sulfur is emitted back
into the atmosphere from sea spray. The remaining sulfur is lost
to the ocean depths, combining with iron to form ferrous sulfide
which is responsible for the black color of most marine
sediments.